America’s favorite pastime is finally opening its door to a new chapter—a new era, actually—a professional women’s baseball league. It is now set to debut in 2026, and the Women’s Pro Baseball League will be the first of its kind in over 70 years. It will have six teams, predominantly in the Northeast. This is a gigantic step in the sports world!

This is because it’s not just another addition to a sports calendar. It’s more than that—it stands for equality. It’s about representation and having that stage for women to compete in. We have women acing everywhere, whether it’s space or science, sports, and athletics, and this time baseball. Now, we can finally find the hidden Babe Ruth and Derek Jeter of women’s baseball. And there is a woman who made it all possible!

A vision that took years in the making

The WPBL was a dream for many, but it came to life because of Justine Siegal. She is a trailblazer in women’s baseball and, in fact, a celebrated figure in the baseball world. She made history by becoming the first woman to coach a men’s baseball team—Oakland Athletics—in 2015. And she didn’t just stop there; she immersed herself in advocating for women in sports roles.

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Siegal has a non-profit, Baseball for All, which has empowered many young players to go ahead with what they love. Whether it’s playing or coaching, she has helped them, and she is so excited about the WPBL coming to life. “I am so excited that there will finally be a professional women’s baseball league. It is a dream come true for all the girls and women who play America’s pastime,” she said, as reported by The New York Times.

Siegel said that women have been waiting for 70 years for a league to call their own and that their ‘time is now.’ Together with lawyer and businessman Keith Stein, they are ready to change the baseball landscape.

Following in the footsteps of the WNBA and NWSL

Every sport develops, grows, and moves forward. Stein and Siegal thank the success of other professional women’s sports for giving them the blueprint to make their dreams a reality. For starters, the WNBA had record-breaking attendance and viewership. It led to them adding three more teams in two years. Meanwhile, even the National Women’s Soccer League is getting a monstrous rise and is expected to announce a 16th franchise. The Hockey League is set for a second season. There hasn’t been a better time than this for women’s sports.

“We believe that the success of other women’s professional leagues, such as the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA, founded in 1986) and the National Women’s Soccer League,” said Stein. And the WPBL isn’t just marching forward with its founders but has other stellar legends to help guide them. There are women baseball icons Ayami Sato and also two-time MLB World Series winning manager Cito Gaston as their special advisors. They are lending their expertise to ensure everything goes well with WPBL. Surely enough, them being there will help create the best female baseball platform.

The real question is whether it will spark the same passion and bring the legacy we have seen in men’s leagues. Will there be a next Babe Ruth or Derek Jeter? That only time can say, but one thing is for sure—the future of baseball just got way more interesting.