n”,”providerName”:”Twitter”,”providerUrl”:”https://twitter.com”,”type”:”oembed”,”width”:550,”contentType”:”wealthy”},{“__typename”:”Markdown”,”content material”:”Yoshida, then a excessive schooler, was drafted by the Kobe 9 Cruise of the Kansai Independent Baseball League earlier than the league’s inaugural season. She made her debut on March 26, 2009, in entrance of 11,592 followers on the Osaka Dome, going through two batters and placing out one.nnIn 2010, Yoshida signed a contract with the Chico Outlaws of the unbiased Golden Baseball League primarily based in California and have become the primary lady to play baseball professionally on two continents — an event that’s marked by a show on the National Baseball Hall of Fame. She was simply 18 years outdated on the time.nnAfter battling a large number of accidents, Yoshida took a training job with the Agekke Corporation’s girls’s baseball crew in 2017, however the want to play by no means left her.nn“I wanted to continue coaching, but there was something in me that felt incomplete,” Yoshida advised Yahoo! Japan. “In order to teach children the joys of playing baseball, I needed to see it through. If I didn’t try, I probably would’ve regretted it.nn”Considering my age, I started to think more often about whether I should continue playing. I’m not even sure, personally, what I should do. But even as I continued to get injured, I couldn’t bring myself to quit baseball. I realized I still wanted to challenge my knuckleball. Not just in Japan, but overseas.””,”type”:”text”}],”contentType”:”news”,”subHeadline”:null,”summary”:”The “Knuckle Princess” is still pursuing her baseball dream — and breaking barriers — on multiple continents.nEri Yoshida, who became the first female professional baseball player in her native Japan at the age of 16 and later played professionally in the United States, will return to the U.S. to”,”tagline({“formatString”:”none”})”:null,”tags”:[{“__typename”:”TaxonomyTag”,”slug”:”offbeat”,”title”:”offbeat”,”type”:”taxonomy”},{“__typename”:”ContributorTag”,”slug”:”thomas-harrigan”,”title”:”Thomas Harrigan”,”type”:”contributor”},{“__typename”:”TaxonomyTag”,”slug”:”apple-news”,”title”:”Apple News”,”type”:”taxonomy”}],”type”:”story”,”thumbnail”:”https://img.mlbstatic.com/mlb-images/image/upload/{formatInstructions}/mlb/etlxq51dtv7mxh3nnrjm”,”title”:”Eri Yoshida returning to play in NY indy league”}}}}
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Eri Yoshida, the “Knuckleball Princess,” pitched for the Chico Outlaws (Calif.) of the unbiased Golden Baseball League 13 years in the past.
The “Knuckle Princess” remains to be pursuing her baseball dream — and breaking obstacles — on a number of continents.
Eri Yoshida, who turned the primary feminine skilled baseball participant in her native Japan on the age of 16 and later performed professionally within the United States, will return to the U.S. to play in New York’s unbiased Empire Professional Baseball League in June, in response to a report from Yahoo! Japan.
The knuckleball, which helped Yoshida grow to be a pioneer for feminine baseball gamers throughout the globe, stays on the middle of the 31-year-old’s baseball journey. That journey started greater than 15 years in the past when she noticed a video of then-Red Sox knuckleballer Tim Wakefield and was impressed to study baseball’s most original pitch. Unlike the vast majority of knuckleball pitchers, Yoshida throws hers sidearm.
Eri Yoshida, the Knuckle Princess and Tim Wakefield protege, remains to be going at 31. She’s going to play in an Indy league in New York from subsequent month. https://t.co/5sBB8DZmx3
Yoshida, then a excessive schooler, was drafted by the Kobe 9 Cruise of the Kansai Independent Baseball League earlier than the league’s inaugural season. She made her debut on March 26, 2009, in entrance of 11,592 followers on the Osaka Dome, going through two batters and placing out one.
In 2010, Yoshida signed a contract with the Chico Outlaws of the unbiased Golden Baseball League primarily based in California and have become the primary lady to play baseball professionally on two continents — an event that’s marked by a show on the National Baseball Hall of Fame. She was simply 18 years outdated on the time.
After battling a large number of accidents, Yoshida took a training job with the Agekke Corporation’s girls’s baseball crew in 2017, however the want to play by no means left her.
“I wanted to continue coaching, but there was something in me that felt incomplete,” Yoshida advised Yahoo! Japan. “In order to show youngsters the fun of taking part in baseball, I wanted to see it by way of. If I didn’t attempt, I in all probability would’ve regretted it.
“Considering my age, I began to assume extra typically about whether or not I ought to proceed taking part in. I’m not even certain, personally, what I ought to do. But at the same time as I continued to get injured, I couldn’t carry myself to stop baseball. I noticed I nonetheless wished to problem my knuckleball. Not simply in Japan, however abroad.”