\u201cWritten off because of my height (of 5-foot-9), because of where I was drafted \u2014 I know how it feels to be the underdog,\u201d Young explained. \u201cAnd now these ladies right here are giving that same fight. I see it in their eyes. I see it in the way they come and practice. I see it in the way they get ready for the game.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s like d\u00e9j\u00e0 vu. They\u2019ve got that same energy, that same spark as I did when I was a young player, because these ladies feel like the odds are against them. That\u2019s what makes this so enjoyable for me. And that\u2019s why I\u2019m trying to give them everything I\u2019ve got to make them better ballplayers and to convince the world that women can play baseball.\u201d<\/p>\n
The WPBL is the modern attempt to professionalize the women\u2019s game<\/a>, and the most notable effort to do so since the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League<\/a> \u2014 which was eternalized in the movie \u201cA League of Their Own\u201d \u2014 folded 72 years ago.\n<\/p>\n Young\u2019s Queens are one of four teams in the WPBL \u2014 along with the Boston Hunters, San Francisco Firebells and New York Heights \u2014 amid a seven-week season that runs from Aug. 1 through the playoffs in mid-September. This is Young\u2019s first managerial job, following stints as an assistant with the Astros, Diamondbacks, Rockies, Braves and most recently as an Angels\u2019 base coach the past two seasons. The 1996 National League All-Star and the man who hit the first home run in MLB history in Denver<\/a> \u2014 a leadoff shot at Mile High Stadium in front of a record crowd of 80,227 on April 9, 1993 \u2014 dreams of being a big-league manager. But his immediate goal is to win the WPBL\u2019s inaugural title with the Queens when the playoffs begin on Sept. 9.<\/a><\/p>\n Young, who was on the Rockies\u2019 first playoff team in 1995, previously won the World Series with the Braves as the team\u2019s first base coach in 2021.\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n \u201cThe first question I asked (the Queens) in the first meeting was, \u2018Do you want me to coach you like I coach the Atlanta Braves, Ronald Acu\u00f1a Jr. and Ozzie Albies and all those guys, or you do want me to coach you as young ladies?’\u201d Young recalled. \u201cI told them they didn\u2019t have to answer, because I was going to coach them the same way, because that\u2019s all I know. I told them, \u2018I would be fake if I gave you anything other than my real coaching style.\u2019 They said, \u2018That\u2019s exactly what we want.’\u201d<\/p>\n The Queens feature several players with significant name recognition in the sport.\n<\/p>\n That includes center fielder\/leadoff hitter Mo\u2019ne Davis<\/a> (who rose to fame as a star pitcher in the 2014 Little League World Series), Ashton Lansdell<\/a> (the starter at third base for Team USA), and pitchers Ayami Sato<\/a> (a three-time Women\u2019s Baseball World Cup MVP) and Meggie Meidlinger<\/a> (a Team USA mainstay for two decades). The league also features an icon in San Francisco ace Kelsie Whitmore<\/a>, who has pitched in men\u2019s independent leagues as well as for the Savannah Bananas, and up-and-comers such as Jaida Lee<\/a>. The 20-year-old pitcher was 16 when she became the first female to compete in men\u2019s baseball at the Canada Summer Games.\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n Rachelle \u201cRocky\u201d Henley, the Heights\u2019 manager, believes the WPBL\u2019s inaugural season is laying the groundwork for the league\u2019s long-term success. Henley played for the Colorado Silver Bullets during the barnstorming women\u2019s baseball team\u2019s<\/a> debut season in 1994, an experience she described as a \u201cnovelty\u201d given that the Silver Bullets played against men.\n<\/p>\n Henley has been a prominent figure in women\u2019s baseball for decades, and the Bay Area native has been critical in the growth of the sport in Northern California. She cofounded the San Francisco Bay Sox Girls Baseball Program<\/a> in 2015, which has over 120 girls and has travel teams that compete in the annual Baseball For All National Girls Baseball Tournament.<\/a><\/p>\n The former Silver Bullet said that the WPBL should stay centered in one city for the next few years, giving it a base to grow its exposure and sponsorships. She sees expanded rosters and a longer schedule on the horizon, too.\n<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re putting a good product on the field right now, and that product (will continue to improve),\u201d Henley said. \u201cGoing to cities (with geographically-based teams), that would be the ultimate goal, and having six or eight teams in the league. I could see that down the road, but just not quite yet. For now, I\u2019m really excited about the momentum this league has generated for the sport.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n![\"Rockies](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/161023547.jpg\")
Rockies leadoff hitter Eric Young, in the team’s first plate appearance at Mile High Stadium, smacked a home run to the seats in left-center field on April 9, 1993. (Karl Gehring, The Denver Post)\n<\/p>\n
\n![\"Former](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/TDP-Z-EY-WPBL-5.jpg\")
Former Little League World Series star Mo’ne Davis slides into home for the Los Angeles Queens during a Women’s Pro Baseball League at Robin Roberts Stadium in Springfield, Illinois. (Courtesy of Holly Desautels\/Women’s Pro Baseball League)\n<\/p>\n![\"As](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/TDP-Z-EY-WPBL-3.jpg\")
As former Rockies player Eric Young looks on from the dugout, the Los Angeles Queens celebrate during a 2026 game in the Women’s Pro Baseball League at Robin Roberts Stadium in Springfield, Illinois. (Courtesy of Holly Desautels\/Women’s Pro Baseball League)<\/p>\n