Woman in baseball

[dps]

I don't see why it shouldn't...
The only real issue there is if that would cause most women to be excluded. Having pro woman's basketball and Olympic events allows more women to compete. I wouldn't have any issue women who chose to forgo competing in the "woman's league" in order to compete in the men's, though.

That's why there was a lot of opposition a few years ago to letting a woman compete in men's golf tournaments, and a lot of it came from the LPGA, because there were fears that if some of the top women started to compete on the men's tour, it would kill the LPGA and knock a lot of the women out of being able to compete at all.

[ohms_law]

Yea, I remember...
The thing about baseball is that there really isn't any professional baseball (or softball). There's a lot of "amateur" (school) support for it, though.
Ultimately, I just think that baseball, due to both the game itself and a pent up amateur supply glut, is in a unique position when it comes to putting women into the professional ranks. Also, this isn't the 50's or 60's (where black players, for example, were playing in "equal but separate" pro leagues) and any women who are given a chance will very likely come up through the farm ranks. That would certainly put any appearance of "circus signings" to rest.

[5dodgers5]

I think that if a woman does play in the MLB, then it would be a devastating pitcher for an AL team. I don't see a woman being able to hit anyone other than Tim Wakefield any time soon, but those pitchers are just absolutely devastating.

Anyone ever see that DVD with Jennie Finch, and they had a whole section on all the major leaguers she struck out? Astounding.

[Matty86]

I don't think its at all like the color barier..

[200tang]

I don't think its at all like the color barier..

it is and isn't. A black man and white man are equal in every way, but a man and woman aren't built the same.

[Matty86]

it is and isn't. A black man and white man are equal in every way, but a man and woman aren't built the same.

That's how I see it. The color barier being broken was huge, and opened up the league for all of the talent that we see today. A woman breaking a gender barier will not have the same effect. I'm sorry, maybe someday there will be a few women playing, or maybe even one who is great... but women in the MLB will not up the level of play and bring more people (for the right reasons at least) to ball parks.

[Jeffy25]

My point was.. have you watched women basketball? Even the best woman would have a hard time being a bench warmer .. the games look so vastly different they move at absolutely different speeds.

In addition look at all track and field and swimming events women times/scores lack significantly behind mens, look at the results from the olympics in any comparable race the winner of the womens would finish last in any any of the mens race.

Even at the top 1% women are still behind the men physically - could a woman possibly compete with the men, maybe, but in order to break that signifcant barrier, the woman must rank as a top player to make that jump.

but do you believe over time women could catch up? or will there always be this signifigant difference?

[Jeffy25]

I think that if a woman does play in the MLB, then it would be a devastating pitcher for an AL team. I don't see a woman being able to hit anyone other than Tim Wakefield any time soon, but those pitchers are just absolutely devastating.

Anyone ever see that DVD with Jennie Finch, and they had a whole section on all the major leaguers she struck out? Astounding.

Jennie Finch? I thought her name was Jackie Mitchell...who struck out the Babe and Gehrig back to back in an exhibition game....if memory serves me correctly...she was raised by a hall of famer. or at least learned the game from one

[Slingshot]

I really don't see how women would play in MLB. If anything, women will get their own league before anything else.

[ohms_law]

Why would MLB do that, though? It'd be much cheaper to simply allow teams to start signing women to minor league contracts.

Besides, with the state the the WNBA is in (let alone the economy as a whole), I don't see anyone providing financing for a woman's only league at this point.

[Jeffy25]

Why would MLB do that, though? It'd be much cheaper to simply allow teams to start signing women to minor league contracts.

Besides, with the state the the WNBA is in (let alone the economy as a whole), I don't see anyone providing financing for a woman's only league at this point.

I don't see it happening for a very long time.

A woman's only league is year's away...if ever...and it would likely be used to recruit softball players into a professional atmosphere after college. Which I don't really think there would be enough of a draw for fans after a few years. I sa let them join the MLB.....those that would be good enough, but not great in a woman's only league won't get much of a chance, but the pros are you might see some great women in there, and eventually see even better women playing.

[HoustonGM]

but do you believe over time women could catch up? or will there always be this signifigant difference?

Considering there are basic genetic differences between men and women, I don't see how it's possible for women overall to "catch up", short of us figuring how to restructure the DNA of the entire human race.

[Jeffy25]

Considering there are basic genetic differences between men and women, I don't see how it's possible for women overall to "catch up", short of us figuring how to restructure the DNA of the entire human race.

sorry maybe I should have broaden my explanation of "catch up"

I don't think they will ever fully catch up...maybe 90/10 or 80/20 men to women...but I can see women developing at earlier rates in order to be able to produce women who could eventually play...if women know at an earlier age that they can make it...then they are more likely to train to become that type of ball player....although this could take decades on decades to happen....

[HoustonGM]

I don't disagree with that.

[ohms_law]

Regardless, as I said earlier, all the stuff about the differences between men and women are basically irrelevant anyway. Sure, men and women as a whole are very different. However, there's an extreme sampling error in any professional athletics. There's nothing in the genetic code of humanity which prevents women from become super athletic, it's simply more rare.

I'm sure that it's true that there will never be as many female athletes at the professional skill level of the average male athlete, but... so what?