Pitcher and outfielder Kelsey Whitmore is returning to familiar surroundings after being selected by San Francisco with the first pick in the inaugural Women’s Pro Baseball League draft Thursday night.
Mo’Nae Davis, meanwhile, had to wait until the 10th pick before being selected by Los Angeles. Davis, 24, who is from Philadelphia, participated in the 2014 Little League World Series at the age of 13 and became the first girl to win a game and pitch a shutout.
Whitmore is from San Diego and made his professional debut in the Bay Area in 2016 with a classmate team, the Sonoma Stompers. The 27-year-old has won two silver medals representing the United States at the Women’s Baseball World Cup and a gold medal at the 2015 Pan-Am Games in Toronto.
“You ask the 6-year-old version of me about this opportunity that’s happening right now, one, probably, she wouldn’t believe you, but, two, just be so, so, so, so, so excited,” said Whitmore, who signed with the Staten Island FerryHawks in 2022, becoming the first woman to compete in pro baseball’s Atlantic League. She played for the Savannah Bananas this season.
Whitmore was among 120 players selected in a six-round draft, which also included teams representing New York and Boston.
Major League Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred opened the draft by congratulating the WPBL on its launch. The league play is scheduled to start from August 1.
Each team made five selections per round, with the order of selection determined by random draw. Teams will reduce their 30-player rosters to 15 for the start of the season.
Japan’s Ayami Sato finished second in Los Angeles. The 35-year-old right-hander is a five-time World Cup winner and the only player to earn three tournament MVP honours.
New York selected American infielder Kylie Lahners with the third pick. Boston selected South Korean catcher Hyona Kim at No. 4.
Startup League held a four-day trial camp in Washington this summer, which attracted more than 600 candidates.
The league is scheduled to play all of its games at Robin Roberts Stadium in Springville, Illinois. Teams will remain there for a seven-week season, divided into a four-week regular season, one week for all-star activities, and a two-week playoff.
The WPBL was co-founded by Justine Siegel, who in 2015 became the first woman to coach an MLB team with the Oakland Athletics. It will be the first pro baseball league for women since the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League – which was immortalized in the film “A League of Their Own” – disbanded in 1954.
