AJ Andrews | |
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Akron Racers | |
Outfielder | |
Born: Oldsmar, Florida | June 7, 1993|
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Ayanna Jeanene Andrews (born June 7,1993) [1] is an American former professional softball player with the now defunct Akron Racers of National Pro Fastpitch. [2] In 2016,she became the first woman to win a Rawlings Gold Glove Award. [3]
She is also the current host of the Saturday morning MLB Network show Play Ball.
Playing for Countryside High School in Clearwater,Florida,Andrews was named Pinellas County player of the year. [4] She led the state in stolen bases and batting average as a senior. [5]
Andrews played college softball for the LSU Lady Tigers. Twice she participated in the Women's College World Series. [6] She graduated from LSU in 2015. [7]
Andrews was selected by the Chicago Bandits of National Pro Fastpitch (NPF) in the second round of the 2015 NPF Draft. [8] After the 2015 season,she was traded to the Akron Racers. [9]
In 2016,Andrews became the first woman to win a Rawlings Gold Glove Award. [10] She was also a co-winner of the Rally Spike Award as the league's stolen base leader. [11] In 2017,she was featured in the Body Issue of ESPN The Magazine . [12]
The Rawlings Gold Glove Award,usually referred to as simply the Gold Glove or Golden Glove,is the award given annually to the Major League Baseball (MLB) players judged to have exhibited superior individual fielding performances at each fielding position in both the National League (NL) and the American League (AL). The Gold Glove is widely considered one of the most prestigious defensive awards in baseball.
National Pro Fastpitch (NPF),formerly the Women's Pro Softball League (WPSL),was a professional women's softball league in the United States. The teams battled for the Cowles Cup.
The Akron Racers were a women's softball team based in Akron,Ohio. In 2018 they moved to Cleveland and were renamed the Cleveland Comets. The team was started by Joey Arietta in 1999 to participate in the Women's Pro Softball League (WPSL). From 2004-2017,they have played as a member of National Pro Fastpitch (NPF).
The Chicago Bandits were a women's professional softball team based in Rosemont,Illinois. Since the 2005 season,they have played as a member of National Pro Fastpitch (NPF). The Bandits won the 2008 NPF championship,defeating the Washington Glory in the final game of the championship series. The team won their second NPF championship following the 2011 season when they won the championship series two games to none over the USSSA Pride. Following the 2015 season the team won its third NPF championship defeating the USSSA Pride two games to none. They played their home games at Parkway Bank Sports Complex in Rosemont,Illinois. The team folded in 2021 when the NPF disbanded.
Charlotte Lee Morgan is an America],former professional softball pitcher and current Head Coach for Cal State Northridge. She played college softball for Alabama from 2007 to 2010,where she is the career leader for the school in RBIs,also ranking top-15 in the NCAA Division I. She was also named a four-time all-conference honoree and twice named SEC Player of the Year. Morgan was the No. 1 draft pick in the 2010 National Pro Fastpitch Senior Draft,beginning her career with The USSSA Pride based in Kissimmee,Florida,winning a title in 2010. In 2020,Morgan was named the head coach of the California State University,Northridge softball team after previously working at several colleges as a pitching coach.
National Pro Fastpitch held two drafts before the 2016 season:
The 2013 National Pro Fastpitch season was the 10th season of professional softball under the name National Pro Fastpitch (NPF) for the only professional women's softball league in the United States. From 1997 to 2002,NPF operated under the names Women's Pro Fastpitch (WPF) and Women's Pro Softball League (WPSL). Each year,the playoff teams battle for the Cowles Cup.
The 2012 National Pro Fastpitch season was the ninth season of professional softball under the name National Pro Fastpitch (NPF) for the only professional women's softball league in the United States. From 1997 to 2002,NPF operated under the names Women's Pro Fastpitch (WPF) and Women's Pro Softball League (WPSL). The 2012 season is especially notable because due to weather and scheduling issues,the NPF Championship Series was not completed and no Cowles Cup champion was named.
The 2011 National Pro Fastpitch season was the eighth season of professional softball under the name National Pro Fastpitch (NPF) for the only professional women's softball league in the United States. From 1997 to 2002,NPF operated under the names Women's Pro Fastpitch (WPF) and Women's Pro Softball League (WPSL). Each year,the playoff teams battle for the Cowles Cup.
Megan Renee Betsa is an American,former collegiate All-American,right-handed professional softball pitcher and coach. She is a former assistant coach at Chattanooga. She played college softball for Michigan in the Big Ten Conference,where she is the career strikeout ratio (10.7) leader for both the Big Ten and Michigan,and also ranks top-20 for the NCAA Division I. Betsa was selected seventh overall by the Akron Racers in the 2017 NPF Draft,and went on to play professionally for the now defunct Racers.
The 2010 National Pro Fastpitch season was the seventh season of professional softball under the name National Pro Fastpitch (NPF) for the only professional women's fastpitch softball league in the United States. From 1997 to 2002,NPF operated under the names Women's Pro Fastpitch (WPF) and Women's Pro Softball League (WPSL). Each year,the playoff teams battle for the Cowles Cup.
The 2007 National Pro Fastpitch season was the fourth season of professional softball under the name National Pro Fastpitch (NPF) for the only professional women's fastpitch softball league in the United States. From 1997 to 2002,NPF operated under the names Women's Pro Fastpitch (WPF) and Women's Pro Softball League (WPSL). Each year,the playoff teams battle for the Cowles Cup.
The 2005 National Pro Fastpitch season was the second season of professional softball under the name National Pro Fastpitch (NPF) for the only professional women's fastpitch softball league in the United States. From 1997 to 2002,NPF operated under the names Women's Pro Fastpitch (WPF) and Women's Pro Softball League (WPSL). Each year,the playoff teams battle for the Cowles Cup.
The 2004 National Pro Fastpitch season was the first season of professional softball under the name National Pro Fastpitch (NPF) for the only professional women's fastpitch softball league in the United States. From 1997 to 2002,NPF operated under the names Women's Pro Fastpitch (WPF) and Women's Pro Softball League (WPSL). Each year,the playoff teams battle for the Cowles Cup.
The 2016 National Pro Fastpitch season was the 13th season of professional softball under the name National Pro Fastpitch (NPF) for the only professional women's softball league in the United States. From 1997 to 2002,NPF operated under the names Women's Pro Fastpitch (WPF) and Women's Pro Softball League (WPSL). Each year,the playoff teams battle for the Cowles Cup.
The 2017 National Pro Fastpitch season was the 14th season of professional softball under the name National Pro Fastpitch (NPF) for the only professional women's softball league in the United States. From 1997 to 2002,NPF operated under the names Women's Pro Fastpitch (WPF) and Women's Pro Softball League (WPSL). Each year,the playoff teams battle for the Cowles Cup.
The 2018 National Pro Fastpitch season was the 15th season of professional softball under the name National Pro Fastpitch (NPF) for the only professional women's softball league in the United States. From 1997 to 2002,NPF operated under the names Women's Pro Fastpitch (WPF) and Women's Pro Softball League (WPSL). Each year,the playoff teams battle for the Cowles Cup.
Jessica "Jessie" Lynn Warren is an American,former collegiate All-American,professional softball player. She played college softball for the Florida State Seminoles,winning the 2018 Women's College World Series national title as a senior,and was subsequently named Most Outstanding Player for the series.
Jade Rhodes is a former collegiate All-American,right-handed professional All-Star softball player,originally from Sarasota,Florida. Rhodes played for the Auburn Tigers of the Southeastern Conference from 2013 to 2016 as a third baseman and first baseman and ranks in career home runs for the school. She helped the Tigers to a second-place finish at the 2016 Women's College World Series and was named All-Tournament. Although undrafted,Rhodes went on to play in the National Pro Fastpitch from 2016 to 2019 and won a title in 2017 with the Scrap Yard Dawgs.
Brianna Hesson is an American softball coach and former first baseman and outfielder,who is a current assistant softball coach for the Austin Peay Governors. She played college softball at Georgia from 2008 to 2011. She played in the National Pro Fastpitch from 3 seasons from 2011 to 2013 with her longest tenure as a player with the Akron Racers.