Providing Opportunities for Women to Shine in Baseball

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The Little League World Series began in 1947. Since that time, there have been only 19 girls in the series. While that number seems shockingly low, it provides a clear picture of the disparaging lack of women in baseball.

Girls can often play baseball when they’re younger, in a little league team. But, it seems that most young girls are eventually directed toward softball as an alternative. These two sports clearly separate boys and girls (and eventually men and women). While there is currently a Team USA women’s baseball team, it’s nothing compared to the teams featured in the MLB. Team USA doesn’t get the recognition that major league baseball players get on a regular basis, and they certainly don’t get the playing time or financial reward.

Baseball might be America’s favorite pastime, but the MLB has often faced scrutiny for not being diverse enough. Meanwhile, countries like Japan have embraced women’s baseball and have taken the world by storm with their own league. Japan encourages its girls to start playing baseball at a young age and gives them an actual pipeline to become professional players – something the U.S. severely lacks.

So, what can the U.S. do to provide more opportunities for girls and women in baseball? How can we change the face of the future of the sport by truly letting women shine?

Lessons in Little League

We’ve already touched on the fact that most little league organizations across the country allow girls to play. But, what many people don’t recognize is how many benefits there are to not only “letting girls play,” but encouraging them to play. Some might argue that it’s easier for girls to get hurt or that they’re not as athletic, which can make it harder to prevent injuries, but that’s simply not true.

When a girl plays an organized sport like baseball, it can provide her with advocates for things that might be going on at home. One study discovered that two-thirds of coaches that have been trained in identifying child abuse could recognize at least two signs without being prompted. The right coach might be the person that puts a stop to abuse in a child’s life when they’re a part of a team. Abuse isn’t always easy to detect without some kind of physical symptom like bruising or broken bones. Coaches who can recognize some of the subtler signs and patterns can help to save a child’s life.

Baseball also provides an opportunity to help girls with ADHD. While it’s true that more boys get diagnosed with the disorder than girls, symptoms like distractability, hyperactivity and impulsivity can all be signs that a girl is dealing with ADHD. While there are a variety of treatments for ADHD, including medications like Adderall, physical exercise and sports have been shown to help both boys and girls manage their symptoms.

Little league can also help girls to feel more empowered, especially when they’re on an equal playing field with boys. When they’re treated as equals from a young age, it can carry over into adulthood, which brings us to our next section.

The Cultural Impact of Women in Baseball

In many cases, women are still on the sidelines when it comes to professional sports. Only about 200,000 women across the country play collegiate sports, so imagine how hard it is for those same women to cross over into being a professional, full-time athlete. In a society that is currently hyper-focused on gender equality and issues like sexual assault and violence, it’s the perfect time for women to make a bigger move into professional sports, and for organizations like the MLB to give them opportunities.

If organizations do provide more opportunities, it can change the way women in sports are viewed. Ending gendered sports can help to end other gender-based issues as well, including sexual assault or sexual advances without consent.

What most Americans probably think of when it comes to women’s baseball is reflected in the 1992 film, A League of Their Own. While the movie was based on a true story, it showed that women can, indeed, play the game and even have their own league. Unfortunately, women’s baseball has faced a sort of “stop and start” history over the years. In 1954, the league reflected in A League of Their Own disbanded due to low attendance, and women have struggled to make a strong comeback in baseball ever since. But, it isn’t for lack of trying.

By promoting gender equality in baseball, it could open the doors for other leagues and other types of sports to fight back against exclusion, too, and finally become more diverse. It’s time to get women off the bench and take a page from Japan’s book when it comes to equality in baseball. It starts with encouraging girls to play young, providing opportunities at the high school and collegiate level, and promoting an environment of gender-equality on a major league level.