It's not how big you are, it's how big you play

I've been reading up on a story I first heard about back in 2009, about a female little league baseball player who threw a perfect game. Big deal, right? Well, she was playing against the boys, on a team of boys. Still, pretty cool, but not really a huge deal. Oh, it was in an all-star game too. And did I mention she just did it again? And pitched her team to a 12-0 record this season? And I guess I should say she's being scouted by a former MLB GM. Chelsea Baker doesn't want to play softball, and I don't blame her. I always felt it was demeaning in a way, that girls had to play with a bigger, heavier ball, and throw it underhand. Of course it's not going to go as far. Of course they aren't going to throw 100mph fast balls, or knuckleballs. Most of the time when a girl first picks up a softball, she has to put down a baseball, because there aren't any baseball teams for her to play on. Chelsea Baker has been playing with the boys since she was old enough to. Check out these stats. She hasn't lost a sanctioned game in 4 YEARS. Her team is 95-8-2 in 4 years with 3 championships. She's struck out 127 batters in 60 innings this year. I know MILB and MLB team owners and GMs who would weep with gratitude for stats like that. And that's playing against boys who are bigger, stronger and in some cases, older than she is.

Strasburg who?

I know, I know, it's early to say that Chelsea will still be playing when she's his age. But at 13, she's entering an age where plans for the future start to form. She's planning on trying out for the baseball team when she enters high school in a year. She's already throwing 60+mph with her fastball and is becoming an accomplished knuckleballer. If she's 13, and throwing better than the boys, who's to say that can't and won't continue? Currently, there is only one female player who is playing professional ball in a development league in Cali. Who's to say that a female couldn't pitch in the minors or majors though? The gender barrier hasn't really been tested in baseball yet. Once in a while you'll hear the errant story of a girl playing little league football and then for her high school team, and then silence. And women playing hockey just aren't as quick as the men playing the same game. And it's easy to understand why. Physically speaking, female physiques aren't able to get the mass and size of male physiques. But as a pitcher on a baseball team, technique could mean more than size and could overcome gender.

Marilyn Monroe said 'Women who seek to be equal with men lack ambition.' I think Chelsea just wants to play baseball. And it just so happens that she plays with the boys, and plays well. She said she'll play as long as she keeps winning. I'm hoping she does.