Chelsea Baker's path to mound at Trop as unpredictable as her signature pitch | Tampa Bay Times

from MaxPreps.com

Chelsea Baker, a Little Leaguer we featured here back in 2010, throws BP yesterday at the Trop. 
http://slavieboy.blogspot.com/2010/05/girl-power-indeed.html

From the video, it appears she is facing the expected obstacles one would expect given the novelty of her participation in baseball rather than softball. But, I will still say that her mastery of the knuckle-ball could be the equalizer that allows her to continue to advance another step closer to being the first female to participate in MLB. It takes power and force production out of the equation for her as a pitcher, which is ultimately the largest impediment to having a female pitcher, even at the HS level. 

from Tampa Bay Times:
Chelsea Baker's path to mound at Trop as unpredictable as her signature pitch | Tampa Bay Times:

She pitched 5 ½ years without a loss, pitched two no-hitters, grew so solid on the mound that she landed on ESPN's E:60, Good Morning America and CNN. At the request of the National Baseball Hall of Fame, she sent her jersey for an exhibit called "Diamond Dreams: Women in Baseball." The press started calling her the Knuckleball Princess.

Last week she met Maddon at an event where she was honored for being the first female player to make a varsity baseball roster in Hillsborough County (she wore a black dress and Chuck Taylors). She gave him a signed baseball from her first game pitching for Durant High School. He invited her to throw some pitches to his boys during batting practice.

'via Blog this'

The ides that a woman can pitch at the professional level is not that far-fetched. Another young lady we profiled in 2008, Eri Yoshida has gone on to pitch professionally both in Japan as well as in the Arizona Winter League.

from Wikipedia:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eri_Yoshida

Eri Yoshida (吉田 えり Yoshida Eri^?, born January 17, 1992, in Yokohama, Kanagawa, Japan) is a Japanese professionalbaseball player. She plays as a sidearm knuckleball pitcher for the Ishikawa Million Stars of the independent Baseball Challenge League.^[1] In 2008, at the age of 16, she became the first female drafted by a Japanese men's professional baseball team.^[2]

Baseball career[edit]

Yoshida was fourteen years old when she taught herself how to throw the knuckleball after watching Major League Baseball pitcher Tim Wakefield on television.^[3][4] She stands 1.55 metres (5 ft 1 in) tall,^[2] and her pitches have been clocked at 101 kilometres per hour (63 mph), while her knuckleball measures around 50 mph.^[5] As a high-school sophomore at Kawasaki-kita Senior High School in Kawasaki, she threw the pitch well enough to earn a place on the school's baseball team.^[3] Her success caused a sensation in the national media, who dubbed her the Knuckle Princess.^[3] In 2008, she signed a contract to play for the Kobe 9 Cruise of Kansai Independent Baseball League.^[2][4]

Yoshida made her professional baseball debut at the Osaka Dome in the opening game of the Kansai Independent Baseball League on March 26, 2009 in front of 11,592 fans. She faced two batters, walking the first and striking out the second in a 5-0 win over the Osaka Gold Villicanes.^[6] She appeared in 11 games for the Kobe 9 Cruise and moved on after the season to focus on advancing up the pro ranks. She appeared in a one-inning battle against the top hitters of the Hiroshima Carp on November 24, 2009.^[7]

On December 15, 2009 the Arizona Winter League announced that they had reached an agreement to allow Yoshida to play in their thirty-five game season.^[5] The league served to showcase players who had been overlooked by major league teams in the draft by giving them a chance to play in front of professional scouts.^[5] On February 12, 2010, Yoshida got her first win in Arizona Winter League play, throwing four shut-out innings in a 5-0 win for her team, the Yuma Scorpions, versus Team Canada of the Arizona Winter League.^[8]

Girl Power, Indeed!!

A hat tip to my sister Maria, who sent this to me under the Girl Power title.

We can apparently add 12 year-old Chelsea Baker (joining previously highlighted Eri Yoshida) to the list of potential women working to become the first to break the gender barrier in MLB.

Given her age, she may arrive in another ten years or so, hopefully I live long enough to see it.

http://www.fanhouse.com/2010/05/03/joe-niekros-knuckler-lives-through-arm-of-12-year-old-girl/?icid=main|main|dl4|link1|http://www.fanhouse.com/2010/05/03/joe-niekros-knuckler-lives-through-arm-of-12-year-old-girl/

She fits in the mold of the type of player who would be able to make the leap. Although she now throws a near 70 MPH fastball, which is elite company among twelve year olds, she will lose ground as the boys mature and are able to power 90 mile per hour fastballs in the future.

Physiologically, she has very likely nearly topped out as far as power production necessary to fire elite fastballs, but the knuckler will give her a chance to pitch anywhere.

I don't think Wakefield or either of the Niekro's threw harder than low to mid 80's anyway.

Apparently, Joe Niekro took a shine to her down in Plant City, FL before he passed away and taught her the basics of the knuckler.

I love the quote from Chelsea's step-dad:

"I still hear parents from other teams say, 'When is she going to start playing softball?' '' said stepfather Rod Mason, who helps coach her team now. "And it kind of ticks me off. So I usually just say, 'When she stops striking out your little Johnny.' ''

It shows that their need not be any barriers to success in an environment where merit is the sole basis for reward and advancement. The ball simply does not know who is throwing it or hitting it, it rewards the elite craftsmen without discrimination.

I know some will say coaches will discriminate subconsciously based on societal norms and expectations, but at some point coaches will be more motivated by wins and losses.

Good luck to Chelsea. We will keep an eye on her progress.

Japanese knuckleballer knocking on baseball's door

JAPANESE KNUCKLEBALLER - ERI YOSHIDA

We highlighted this young Japanese pitcher when she was fist drafted in November of 2008 and it appears that she may be something more than a novelty.

From ESPN:
http://sports.espn.go.com/boston/news/story?id=4961259

FORT MYERS, Fla. -- The fraternity of knuckleball pitchers is small, and Tim Wakefield of the Boston Red Sox is its active godfather.

Eri Yoshida hopes to expand that roster and break the gender barrier at the same time.

Yoshida, the petite 18-year-old who became the first female drafted by a Japanese professional team, Kobe 9 Cruise of the Kansai Independent Baseball League, made her pro debut on March 26, 2009, at the Osaka Dome. She learned how to throw a knuckleball as a young girl by watching video of Wakefield.

I ask the question again --

Will Major League Baseball be the first of the major sports to break the gender barrier in the modern era?


From the NBA, this analysis regarding the prospects of arguably the best women's basketball players making the leap from WNBA to NBA.

David Stern thinks it will happen by 2020.

From si.com:
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2009/writers/ian_thomsen/12/04/countdown/index.html


NBA players like LeBron James and Candace Parker's own husband and brother think not.

Shelden Williams, husband to Candace Parker, arguably the best women’s basketball player, said “it’s not something that could happen,’’ pointing to the differences in size, strength, and game play.

He also said that Parker didn’t argue.

“We’ve talked about it,’’ Williams said. “She feels the same way.’’

And then Shelden maybe went a step too far (for Stern’s liking):

Williams said of Stern’s comments, “He has to say that because he wants to promote the WNBA, but it’s not something that’s realistic.’’

I think a Diana Taurasi who could play outside the paint might be a better contributor. A good spot shooter or a three-point specialist a la Steve Kerr could make the jump. Would that be good for the WNBA or would it detract from fan interest? There certainly would not be a mass exodus of women players from the WNBA to the NBA similar to what occurred after Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier in baseball, but it may be the final nail in the coffin for a league that seemingly has trouble attracting anything other than a friends and family fan base as it is.

In baseball, a pitcher that is able to master a trick pitch like the knuckleball or the screwball could certainly make the bigs. There is no need for such a pitcher the level of upper or lower strength that precludes most women from success in other sports or positions where this is nearly a requirement.

Time will tell but it appears as if the NBA or MLB has this event on the radar. It's becoming more a matter of when it happens rather than if it happens.

JAPANESE GIRL DRAFTED TO PRO MENS LEAGUE

THE JAPANESE ARE NOT AFRAID TO BREAK THE MOLD TO FIND NEW PITCHING TALENT

Note: The young lady pictured above is not the girl referenced in the story.

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http://network.nationalpost.com/np/blogs/postedsports/archive/2008/11/17/baseball-japanese-girl-selected-to-play-in-professional-men-s-league.aspx

A 16-year-old schoolgirl with a mean knuckleball has been selected as the first woman ever to play alongside the men in Japanese professional baseball.

Eri Yoshida was drafted for a new independent league that will launch in April, drawing attention for a side-armed knuckler that her future manager Yoshihiro Nakata said was a marvel.

"I never dreamed of getting drafted," Yoshida told reporters Monday, a day after she was selected to play for the Kobe 9 Cruise.

"I have only just been picked by the team and have not achieved anything," she said. "I want to play as a pro eventually in a higher league."

Yoshida, 5-foot-0 tall and weighing 114 pounds, says she wants to follow in the footsteps of the great Boston Red Sox knuckleballer Tim Wakefield.

A female professional baseball federation existed for a few years in the 1950s, but Yoshida will become Japan's first-ever woman to play alongside professional male players.
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I have always thought that this would likely be the fastest route for the first woman to play professionally in the "major" American sports at the highest level.

In football, other than as a kicker who was very accurate from 40 and under, I don't see a woman who could crack an NFL roster in my lifetime.

In basketball, maybe a crack three-point shooter--a la Steve Kerr--could be a possibility as the first woman NBA player.

In baseball, a woman pitcher with a killer knuckle ball or a splitter could pitch effectively at any level. I don't see any major league caliber hitters on the horizon anytime soon. Which is fair, because I don't see any major league hitters capable of hitting Jennie Finch.


絵里の3つの歓声!!!!!
which means, three cheers for Eri, according to Google translation.


ERI YOSHIDA - DRAFTED BY JAPANESE MENS LEAGUE