After being told by her coach at 16 years old that nobody will listen to a female coach on a baseball field, Justine Siegal made it her mission to prove that statement wrong.
In 2009, she did just that. Siegal made history, becoming the first female to throw batting practice to a Major League Baseball (MLB) team at spring training. In 2015, she was hired by the Oakland Athletics to coach in their instructional league, becoming MLB’s first female hire.
Despite proving that girls can succeed in baseball, Siegal still has not stopped fighting for equity. She founded her own nonprofit, Baseball For All, through which young girls are given the opportunity to not only play baseball but coach it.
It allows girls to have a safe and supportive environment and be surrounded by the one thing they love, baseball.
Today, Siegal’s jersey hangs proudly in the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in Cooperstown, New York. She is also an inductee into the National Women’s Sports Museum.
With dreams of working in baseball, I look up to Siegal and what she continues to do for girls with similar aspirations. Siegal has taught me that any dream is within reach and our skills and knowledge should never be overlooked because of our gender.
Women in Baseball 