Women's Pro Baseball League

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Women's Pro Baseball League
Women's Pro Baseball League.svg
Interim logo
Sport Baseball
First season2026 (planned)
Owner(s)
No. of teams6 (planned)
CountryUnited States

The Women's Pro Baseball League (WPBL) is a planned professional women's baseball league in the United States, being developed by co-founders Justine Siegal and Kieth Stein. The league is planned to commence play in 2026, with six teams in the northeastern United States competing.

Contents

History

The Women's Pro Baseball League was co-founded in 2024 by former Major League Baseball (MLB) coach Justine Siegal, and owner of the Intercounty Baseball League's Toronto Maple Leafs, Keith Stein. [1] [2] An advocate for gender equality in sports, Siegal previously founded Baseball for All, a 501(c)(3) organization that promotes girls' participation in baseball. [3] [4] The commercial success and stability of the Women's National Basketball Association and National Women's Soccer League inspired Siegal and Stein to create a professional league for women's baseball, [2] [3] and hired Japan national team pitcher Ayami Sato and former Toronto Blue Jays manager Cito Gaston as special advisers to help develop it. [2] [5] The league's primary aim is to increase the visibility and proliferation of women's baseball by establishing a pathway to professionalism – no high school or college in the U.S. offers girls' baseball programs, [6] and while over 1,300 girls played on boys' high school baseball teams in the 2023–24 academic year, only nine women played on men's NCAA college baseball teams in 2024. [7] [8] The league also intends to capitalize on market research conducted by the MLB, which found that 46% of MLB fans were women, and 53% of women considered themselves MLB fans. [9]

The league's establishment was announced to the public via a press release in October 2024. [10] [11] Player registrations opened shortly afterwards, and within 24 hours, over 400 players from the U.S., Canada, Japan, and the United Kingdom registered their interest in playing in the league. [7] [8] After a week, registrations grew to over 700 players. [11] A scouting camp will take place in early 2025, [8] [12] while a draft is planned to be conducted in late 2025. [13]

Format

Competition in the WPBL will consist of a regular season of around forty games, played from May to August, [6] [13] followed by a playoff tournament that will determine the league's champion. [4] [14]

Organization

The WPBL is owned by its co-founders Justine Siegal and Kieth Stein. The league has no association with Major League Baseball – a decision made to preserve both its independence and its women-led organizational structure. [11] A seven-member advisory board deliberates with Siegal and Stein on decisions regarding the league. It currently consists of Laura Gentile, Kate Childs Graham, Leslie Heaphy, Nona Lee, Digit Murphy, Ayami Sato, and Kat Williams. Maybelle Blair also serves as its Honorary Chair. [12] [15]

Teams

The WPBL aims to commence play with six independently owned clubs, all based in the northeastern United States. [3] [5] An expansion to eight clubs is expected to occur afterward. [7] College and minor league ballparks with a capacity of 2,500–5,000 are being considered for the clubs' home fields. [6]

Broadcasting

The WPBL intends on striking a national broadcasting deal, as opposed to deals with regional sports networks. [4] [14]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Milholm, Joelle (December 10, 2024). "Ever-present and relegated to the sidelines, women's baseball is finally being seen". Breakaway . Archived from the original on December 11, 2024. Retrieved January 25, 2025.
  2. 1 2 3 "New professional women's baseball league to launch in 2026". Sportsnet . October 29, 2024. Archived from the original on October 29, 2024. Retrieved October 29, 2024.
  3. 1 2 3 Young, Ryan (October 29, 2024). "New women's professional baseball league set to launch in 2026: 'Our time is now'". Yahoo! Sports . Archived from the original on October 29, 2024. Retrieved October 29, 2024.
  4. 1 2 3 Hoornstra, Jon Paul (October 29, 2024). "Can the WPBL be the next big thing in women's sports?". The Big Lead . Archived from the original on October 30, 2024. Retrieved October 30, 2024.
  5. 1 2 Anderson, R.J. (October 30, 2024). "New Women's Pro Baseball League to launch in 2026: 'We have been waiting over 70 years'". CBS Sports . Archived from the original on October 30, 2024. Retrieved October 30, 2024.
  6. 1 2 3 Li, David K. (November 3, 2024). "Women's professional baseball is ready for its moment. But first it needs to find players". NBC News . Archived from the original on November 28, 2024. Retrieved January 25, 2025.
  7. 1 2 3 Thames, Alanis (November 13, 2024). "Women's baseball players could soon have a league of their own again". Associated Press . Archived from the original on November 16, 2024. Retrieved November 16, 2024.
  8. 1 2 3 Soriano, Daniel (November 15, 2024). "'A League of their own': Women's baseball finally returns to the field". Inside the Games . Archived from the original on November 16, 2024. Retrieved November 16, 2024.
  9. ↑ Keyser, Hannah (January 17, 2025). "Can a Professional Women's Baseball League Launch in Softball's Shadow?" . Front Office Sports. Archived from the original on January 17, 2025. Retrieved January 25, 2025. According to MLB, 46% of the league's fans are women, and 53% of women consider themselves MLB fans. "Seems like a perfect time to start a women's pro baseball league.
  10. ↑ Hinkson, Kamila (October 30, 2024). "New Women's Pro Baseball League to launch in 2026: 'We have been waiting over 70 years'" . The Athletic . Archived from the original on November 4, 2024. Retrieved November 16, 2024. A professional womens baseball league aims to begin competition in the U.S. in 2026, according to a news release issued Tuesday.
  11. 1 2 3 Oler, Kiri (January 6, 2025). "What the Upstart WPBL Should Learn From Other Women's Sports Leagues". FanGraphs . Archived from the original on January 7, 2025. Retrieved January 25, 2025.
  12. 1 2 Thames, Alanis (December 4, 2024). "New women's baseball league names 97-year-old AAGPBL alum honorary chair on advisory board". Associated Press . Archived from the original on December 9, 2024. Retrieved January 25, 2025.
  13. 1 2 Keyser 2025 , "This spring, the WPBL will host a scouting camp for interested athletes with the intention of holding a draft in the fall. And then next summer, a six-team league will play a 40-game season."
  14. 1 2 "Women's baseball league prepares for '26 launch" . Street & Smith's Sports Business Journal . October 29, 2024. Archived from the original on October 30, 2024. Retrieved October 30, 2024. It plans on securing a national broadcast deal for its inaugural season, which will consist of a regular season, playoffs and championship throughout the summer of 2026.
  15. ↑ "Legendary women's baseball icon Maybelle Blair joins Women's Pro Baseball League". Women's Pro Baseball League. December 3, 2024. Archived from the original on January 15, 2025. Retrieved January 25, 2025.
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