Women of all ages step up to the plate for the Eastern Women's Baseball Conference
Masi Seal, who is part of the Eastern Women's Baseball Conference, has loved baseball since before she could walk.
"My dad, our whole family, has been playing for like, years and years, so I keep it going," the 14-year-old said.
Some say Seal plays better than the boys.
"Half of all the girls I know can play better than all the boys I've played against," she said. "I know all the girls that I've played with are better than thousands of people."
The EWBC is a league created by women, for women.
"The Eastern Women's Baseball Conference is a league that was created over 30 years ago by women for women, to give women the opportunity to play baseball in a competitive environment, but also have a lot of fun," said Jennifer Francis, president of the EWBC.
The conference officially launched in 2000, but its roots stretch back to the Washington Metropolitan Women's Baseball League, founded in 1990-three years before *A League of Their Own* brought national attention to women's baseball.
Bonnie Hoffman, tournament director and coach, said it's simple.
"Baseball is a game for everybody," she said.
And at the EWBC, everybody means everybody.
"Our players range from about 13 to players in their 70s," Hoffman said. "It really is intended to be a space in which every woman who wants to play has an opportunity to play a game they care about."
The season runs from May through August. Players join one of five teams based in Baltimore, D.C., and Virginia. They play by Major League Baseball rules.
"We are all competitive. We all want to win, but we want to have fun," said Jo Ann Kruger, vice president of the EWBC.
Kruger has played for nearly 25 years.
"Brooks Robinson, I've been number five my whole life because of Brooks," she said. "I was going to replace Cal Ripken as a shortstop on the Orioles. But honestly, growing up, I realized I'm not THAT good."
Still, her passion for the game hasn't changed.
"As much as I enjoyed the game and played the game... I was going to be Cal and every play, my brain was thinking, hey, this is what Cal would do," Kruger said. "Here I am still playing - maybe not for the Orioles, but I am still playing."
For many players, the league is about more than the game.
"People should have access to sports," Hoffman said. "And that includes, especially women, having access to baseball... rather than to feel like they're directed or guided into one spot."
Seal said the league's leaders help players feel accepted and empowered.
"They're just representing girls' baseball in general," she said. "They show that no matter how old you are, no matter what you look like or what you do, like, just do what you love."
And they'll keep swinging for the fences.
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