Ms. Justine Siegal on Women and Girls in Baseball

Ms. Justine Siegal, the founder of Baseball for all, speaks about creating a role for women and girls in baseball. She shares her experiences with individuals such as Mike Veeck, Joe Maddon, and Billy Beane.“When she was 13, Justine’s coach told her that girls were only supposed to play softball—not baseball. At that moment, she vowed she’d never quit. At 16, despite being ridiculed, laughed at, and told no man would ever listen to a woman on the baseball field, she worked toward her goal of becoming a college baseball coach.To give her an edge in an otherwise male-dominated profession, Justine earned her PhD in Sports Psychology while working as an Assistant Baseball Coach for Springfield College. She went on to be the first woman to coach for a professional men’s baseball team (Brockton Rox, 2009), the first woman to throw batting practice to a Major League Baseball team during Spring Training (Cleveland Indians, 2011)—and the first woman to ever coach for a MLB organization (Oakland Athletics, 2015). Since then, her jersey has been hung in the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, and she has gone on to work with baseball teams around the world, including Team Israel at the MLB World Baseball Classic Qualifier, and teams in Japan and Mexico as a guest coach.Now, Justine is giving back to the next generation with Baseball For All, a nonprofit she founded to provide opportunities for girls to play, coach, and lead in baseball. “Too many girls are still told they can’t play baseball. I want girls to know they can follow their passions and that they have no limits—that their dreams matter” (Baseballforall.com).Hosts: Tyler Buchholz and Colin KirkBaseball for AllBob Feller Act of Valor Award FoundationSupport the show