Latest news with #AlexHugo
Boston Globe
02-07-2025
- Sport
- Boston Globe
Women's Pro Baseball League to hold tryouts at Nationals Park as it aims for 2026 debut
Team USA women's baseball star Alex Hugo, who is a special adviser to the league, will lead the tryouts. Advertisement 'We are really excited to see all of the players at tryouts this summer and see their incredible skills,' Hugo said in a statement. 'We're building a future where girls and women who love baseball can dream as big as they want and now, finally, have a league to call their own.' The WPBL was co-founded by Justine Siegal, who is the first woman to coach for an MLB team. When it debuts, it will be the first pro league for women since the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League — the one immortalized in 'A League of Their Own' — dissolved in 1954. As it nears its launch, the WPBL has already struck a media deal with Fremantle, the production company behind shows like 'The Price Is Right' and 'Family Feud,' as well as brought in global women's sports investor Assia Grazioli-Venier as its chair. Advertisement
NBC Sports
02-07-2025
- Business
- NBC Sports
Women's Pro Baseball League to hold tryouts at Nationals Park as it aims for 2026 debut
The Women's Professional Baseball League will hold tryouts next month at the Washington Nationals' home ballpark as it moves closer to its launch. The league is aiming to play its first season with six teams starting in spring 2026. The tryouts, which will be held Aug. 22-25, will determine the 150 players who will be invited to the league's draft in October. More than 600 players registered for the four-day camp, the WPBL said. The first three days will include drill-focused sessions, athletic performance testing and player evaluations at the Nationals' Youth Baseball Academy before an initial round of cuts. Players will then compete in a live game at Nationals Park on Aug. 25, after which the final cuts will happen. Team USA women's baseball star Alex Hugo, who is a special adviser to the league, will lead the tryouts. 'We are really excited to see all of the players at tryouts this summer and see their incredible skills,' Hugo said in a statement. 'We're building a future where girls and women who love baseball can dream as big as they want and now, finally, have a league to call their own.' The WPBL was co-founded by Justine Siegal, who is the first woman to coach for an MLB team. When it debuts, it will be the first pro league for women since the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League — the one immortalized in 'A League of Their Own' — dissolved in 1954. As it nears its launch, the WPBL has already struck a media deal with Fremantle, the production company behind shows like 'The Price Is Right' and 'Family Feud,' as well as brought in global women's sports investor Assia Grazioli-Venier as its chair.
02-07-2025
- Business
Women's Pro Baseball League to hold tryouts at Nationals Park as it aims for 2026 debut
The Women's Professional Baseball League will hold tryouts next month at the Washington Nationals' home ballpark as it moves closer to its launch. The league is aiming to play its first season with six teams starting in spring 2026. The tryouts, which will be held Aug. 22-25, will determine the 150 players who will be invited to the league's draft in October. More than 600 players registered for the four-day camp, the WPBL said. The first three days will include drill-focused sessions, athletic performance testing and player evaluations at the Nationals' Youth Baseball Academy before an initial round of cuts. Players will then compete in a live game at Nationals Park on Aug. 25, after which the final cuts will happen. Team USA women's baseball star Alex Hugo, who is a special adviser to the league, will lead the tryouts. 'We are really excited to see all of the players at tryouts this summer and see their incredible skills,' Hugo said in a statement. 'We're building a future where girls and women who love baseball can dream as big as they want and now, finally, have a league to call their own.' The WPBL was co-founded by Justine Siegal, who is the first woman to coach for an MLB team. When it debuts, it will be the first pro league for women since the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League — the one immortalized in 'A League of Their Own' — dissolved in 1954. As it nears its launch, the WPBL has already struck a media deal with Fremantle, the production company behind shows like 'The Price Is Right" and 'Family Feud,' as well as brought in global women's sports investor Assia Grazioli-Venier as its chair.
New York Times
02-07-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
Women's Pro Baseball League to hold first-ever tryouts in August
Hundreds of women will assemble in Washington, D.C., next month to compete for a chance to play professional baseball in the U.S. for the first time in decades. The Women's Pro Baseball League (WPBL) will hold tryouts at Nationals Park and Nationals Youth Baseball Academy on Aug. 22-25, the league announced Wednesday. More than 600 people registered to take part. Advertisement The first part of the tryout will be held at the Nationals Youth Baseball Academy on Aug. 22-24 and include drills and performance testing. A team led by former Team USA baseball member Alex Hugo will evaluate the players and make cuts. On Aug. 25, Nationals Park will host live game play where final cuts will be made to determine the 150 players eligible for the draft, which will happen in the fall. 'We want to see the best of the best. That's what we're looking for — the best players around the world,' said Justine Siegal, league co-founder and a former baseball player and coach, in an interview on 'CBS Mornings Plus.' The WPBL aims to launch in the summer of 2026 with six teams and would become the first women's professional baseball league in the U.S. since the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League, which existed from 1943 to 1954. The AAGPBL was depicted in the classic 1992 film 'A League of Their Own.' Last month, the Athletes Unlimited Softball League, a new, professional, MLB-backed softball league, began its inaugural season. Hugo, who also played softball at the University of Georgia and the University of Kansas, said there will now be opportunities for women in both sports. 'Softball has their routes, and we're creating a route for us,' Hugo said. 'There's been so many females who have wanted this for a long time and dreamed of it, so now we're getting there.' In May, the WPBL announced a partnership with production company Fremantle, which will produce and distribute game broadcasts, secure sponsors and market the league, among other things. Co-founded by Siegal and attorney Keith Stein, the WPBL has brought on global women's sports investor Assia Grazioli-Venier as chair, and Muse Sport, the sports advisory arm of Grazioli-Venier's firm, Muse Capital, as an official advisory partner. Japanese pitcher Ayami Sato, who in May became the first woman to play in a men's professional baseball league in Canada, and former MLB manager Cito Gaston will also serve as advisors. (Photo of Nationals Park: Scott Taetsch / Getty Images)
CTV News
02-07-2025
- Sport
- CTV News
Women's Pro Baseball League to hold tryouts at Nationals Park as it aims for 2026 debut
A rainbow forms while a tarp is on the field as the start of a baseball game between the Washington Nationals and the Colorado Rockies is delayed due to weather at Nationals Park, Wednesday, June 18, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Jess Rapfogel) The Women's Professional Baseball League will hold tryouts next month at the Washington Nationals' home ballpark as it moves closer to its launch. The league is aiming to play its first season with six teams starting in spring 2026. The tryouts, which will be held Aug. 22-25, will determine the 150 players who will be invited to the league's draft in October. More than 600 players registered for the four-day camp, the WPBL said. The first three days will include drill-focused sessions, athletic performance testing and player evaluations at the Nationals' Youth Baseball Academy before an initial round of cuts. Players will then compete in a live game at Nationals Park on Aug. 25, after which the final cuts will happen. Team USA women's baseball star Alex Hugo, who is a special adviser to the league, will lead the tryouts. 'We are really excited to see all of the players at tryouts this summer and see their incredible skills,' Hugo said in a statement. 'We're building a future where girls and women who love baseball can dream as big as they want and now, finally, have a league to call their own.' The WPBL was co-founded by Justine Siegal, who is the first woman to coach for an MLB team. When it debuts, it will be the first pro league for women since the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League — the one immortalized in 'A League of Their Own' — dissolved in 1954. As it nears its launch, the WPBL has already struck a media deal with Fremantle, the production company behind shows like 'The Price Is Right' and 'Family Feud,' as well as brought in global women's sports investor Assia Grazioli-Venier as its chair. Alanis Thames, The Associated Press
