San Francisco was picked as one of four cities to represent the Women’s Professional Baseball League set to debut next spring.
Los Angeles, New York and Boston also will make up the WPBL’s original four, the league announced Tuesday.
All of the WPBL’s games during its inaugural season will be played at a neutral venue. The league said the site, which also will host the playoffs and all-star game, will be announced at a later date. The league is expected to use minor league and college ballparks when the teams begin playing in their home regions.
The league was co-founded by Justine Siegal, the first woman to coach for an MLB team with the Oakland A’s in 2015. The WPBL announced plans last year to launch in 2026 as a six-team league. When it debuts, it will be the first pro league for women since the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League — immortalized in “A League of Their Own” — dissolved in 1954.
Justine Siegal throws live batting practice to some of the Oakland A’s during spring training workouts at Papago Baseball Park Complex in Phoenix, Ariz., on Wednesday, Feb. 23, 2011. Siegal, 36, was an assistant coach for the Springfield (Mass.) College baseball team from 2007-10. A Cleveland native and lifelong Indians fan, Siegal is also the founder of Baseball For All, an organization that aims to expand opportunities for women in baseball. (Dan Honda/Staff)
“We are so excited to finally announce the WPBL’s first four teams – New York, Boston, Los Angeles and San Francisco,” Siegal said in a WBPL statement. “Each of these cities are storied sports cities and we can’t wait to connect with the fans who live there and baseball fans across the country.”
Each team will carry 15 players on its roster. Over 600 players from nearly a dozen countries participated in the league’s tryouts this summer at Nationals Park in Washington, D.C. The top 100 players from the WPBL’s tryouts advanced to the league’s draft next month, including former Little League star Mo’ne Davis, USA baseball’s Kelsie Whitmore and Japanese pitcher Ayami Sato. Whitmore in 2024 with the Oakland Ballers, became the first woman starting pitcher in the history of the Pioneer League.
SOUTH WILLIAMSPORT, PA – AUGUST 20: Mo’ne Davis #3 of Pennsylvania pitches to a Nevada batter during the first inning of the United States division game at the Little League World Series tournament at Lamade Stadium on August 20, 2014 in South Williamsport, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images)
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The league added that the four cities were selected because of their market size and large fan presence.
“Each of these cities are storied sports cities,” Siegal said in a statement, “and we can’t wait to connect with the fans who live there and baseball fans across the country.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.