Back in 2014 a 13 year old named Mo’ne Davis took the world by storm when she took the mound of the Little League World Series. Throwing 70mph fast balls, she became the first female to win in the LLWS with a eight strikeout shutout.
Now 24, Mo’ne has finally earned the name of a professional baseball player. She was drafted 10th overall in the new Women’s Pro Baseball League by Los Angeles as a centerfielder. The New WPBL has four teams in Boston, New York, Los Angeles, and San Francisco.
During World War II, women took the roles traditionally held by men while those men were overseas fighting and that included the game of baseball with the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League (“A League of Their Own”). The League closed in 1954.
The Women’s Baseball World Cup begins July 22 and runs through July 26 at the Robin Roberts Stadium in Springfield, Illinois with The WPBL following in August.
Davis spoke on playing in the new League saying, “its really cool to play in this league, just to play with other women, especially the women whose names got called and whose names will get called. They’ve done amazing things in the baseball world, so I’m just happy to be alongside of them and to help push this league and the game forward.”
Davis played basketball in high school and softball in college.