It’s been a banner year for women in baseball. The sport isn’t an all-boys club anymore

Editor’s note: Toronto’s Elizabeth Benn is the highest-ranking female baseball operations employee in New York Mets history. In this week’s Proudfoot Corner, on the story behind a Toronto Star story, we look back at her groundbreaking hiring.

SAN DIEGO—Baseball still has a lot of work to do before it can be considered fully inclusive to both genders, but based on some of the trailblazers in 2022 the sport appears headed in the right direction.

This was a banner year for women in baseball as a bunch of new faces were elevated into prominent roles of a male-dominated sport. This isn’t an all-boys club anymore, or at least it won’t be for much longer if these up-and-comers have anything to do about it.

In January, Genevieve Beacom became the first female player to appear in the Australian Baseball League. A few months later, Kelsie Whitmore became the first woman to join an MLB-partner league when she signed with the Staten Island FerryHawks of the Atlantic League.

Then, in late November, Olivia Pichardo became the first woman to make a Division I baseball roster after she tried out as a utility player for Brown University. The first-year student is expected to see time in the infield, outfield and on the mound once the 2023 season gets underway.

These developments must be music to the ears of High Park native Elizabeth Benn, who earlier this year was named director of major-league operations for the New York Mets. She was featured in the pages of the Star around the same time for becoming the highest-ranking female baseball ops employee in franchise history.

Benn was at this week’s winter meetings in San Diego and took part in a roundtable discussion about women in baseball. By her side was Corinne Landrey, director of baseball operations for the Philadelphia Phillies, and Eve Rosenbaum who was recently promoted to become assistant general manager of the Baltimore Orioles.

It must have taken a lot of perseverance for Benn and her female counterparts to get here. They love the game and yet it didn’t always love them back. At age seven, after being invited to participate in an all-star game, a coach suggested not so politely that Benn would be better off going out with friends. A few years later, another coach didn’t even bother to tell her whether she’d made the team.

Benn’s story resonated with me because when I was growing up in Saint John, N.B., I played baseball with a standout female athlete as well. Her name was Stephanie Wood, and while she eventually went on to get a full scholarship to play hockey at Northeastern University in Massachusetts there was a time when her skills on a ball field were just as good.

I spent some time as her catcher, and whenever we’d play a new team they acted like the entire thing was a joke. Then some of those hitters would step into the batter’s box and, well, the laughing stopped. Benn had similar experiences growing up and then again in the New York Metro League.

Benn’s presence as a high-profile female executive is going to break down barriers. What would help even more is for women such as Pichardo to prove they belong on the field as well, which can only help younger girls persevere the next time they’re told this game is for the boys.

For some unknown reason, women have always been pushed toward softball instead of baseball. With Benn, Pichardo and others breaking ground, hopefully those days are coming to an end. This sport should be for everyone to enjoy, both on and off the field.

On the Corner

We kick off the Corner this week with Mary Lynne Draper of Toronto, who gives $50 in memory of Bruce Draper … John and Dina Murphy of Vaughan donate $200 in memory of “our Dad, Bernie Murphy — huge Jays and Leaf fan!” … Another $200 comes from Gord Smith of Toronto in memory of “our daughter, Sari” … Eileen Burchell of Trenton donates $35 in memory of Mary Sinclair … An anonymous Toronto donor gives $1,500 in memory of Douglas Crawford … Ken Chevis of North York checks in with $500 … John Rodway of Port Perry donates $50 … Bruce and Linn Caplan of Oakville are back with $250 … Bhaskar Vemulapalli of Mississauga sends $3,000 … Also from Mississauga: Bob Sicinski, who returns with $50 in memory of brother Ted Sicinski.

David and Maureen Plaskett are long-time supporters from Toronto with $105 in honour of granddaughters Indy and Ellie … Allan Rose from Etobicoke sends $300 in memory of Danny Williams, Erik Schuring and Lennie Sparks, “three much loved friends and great sportsmen who enriched the lives of everyone they knew in so many ways” … Ian MacDonnell of Toronto returns with $650 in memory of Angus and Jessie MacDonnell … Other Toronto donors: Tom Colby with $25, Dan Bulger with $350, $105 from Ron Simpson, $100 from Marsha Contway and $50 from Dixie Jones … Oshawa supporters Danny and Sherry Gallagher give $36 for the 36 seasons the Expos played in Montreal … Another long-time Oshawa supporter: Alan Cawker sends $500 on behalf of his grandchildren and great-grandchildren, and in memory of “my wife, Eleanor Cawker.”

Mark McPherson of Simcoe gives $200 in memory of Campbell McPherson … Elizabeth Pollard from Scarborough delivers $200 in memory of “Jerry, my husband” … Also from Scarborough: Gail Miles with $105 in honour of the Miles family … Another $105 comes from Paul White of Pickering in memory of Aunt Leah who “lived to 100 years young”… The Newmarket McBrides are long-time supporters and send $70 to mark the recent additions of grandchildren Olivia, Abby and Grayson … From Mississauga: James Bell donates $50 in memory of “my wife Edna,” William Bullivant gives $250, Lorne Flynn sends $100 in memory of “my dad Gerard,” and James Pearce donates $50 in memory of Myris and Maria … Eugene Jamieson of Burlington gives $105 in memory of Irean and Walter … Rick Seto of Carleton Place returns with $35 in memory of George and Eleanor Seto … And ending the Corner this week is long-time North York supporter Kathleen Murphy with $500 in memory of her father, “Fast” Eddie Murphy, who received a Santa Claus Fund box as a child and never forgot.

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Gregor Chisholm is a Toronto-based baseball columnist for the Star. Follow him on Twitter: @GregorChisholm or reach him via email: gchisholm@thestar.ca