The Women's Professional Baseball League on Wednesday unveiled the nicknames and logos of its four teams ahead of its inaugural season, with each team name inspired by pioneering women. Kelsie Whitmore, the star pitcher who was the first overall pick in the WPBL's inaugural draft, will play for the San Francisco Firebells. Mo'ne Davis, the history-making former Little League sensation, will play center field for the Los Angeles Queens, along with veteran Japanese pitcher Ayami Sato. The other two teams are the New York Heights and the Boston Hunters.
The WPBL's debut season begins on Aug. 1 in Springfield, Illinois. Games will be played at Robin Roberts Stadium and will run through the second half of September, including a regular season and playoffs. Whitmore told The Associated Press at a scrimmage in March that this is just every little girl's dream to play professional baseball, and now for us to actually be with each other there's so much freedom and peace within it. The league has been years in the making and hopes to create a space for women's baseball players similar to the one the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League did 70 years ago.
Each team identity and name holds a unique meaning tied to notable women in history. The New York Heights were inspired by Dorothy Irene Height, a pioneering civil rights and women's rights leader from New York. The San Francisco Firebells were inspired by Lillie Hitchcock Coit, known as Firebelle, who was a champion of San Francisco's volunteer firefighters. The Los Angeles Queens were created after Lizzie Murphy, a baseball pioneer known as the Queen of the Diamond. The Boston Hunters are inspired by Harriot K. Hunt, a pioneering Boston physician and women's rights activist.
The team logos reflect their namesakes and identities. The New York Heights logo includes graphic lines surrounding a baseball, mimicking the speed of a fastball and resembling the New York skyline. The San Francisco Firebells logo fuses a bell with a phoenix. The Los Angeles Queens logo is a capital Q topped with four baseball diamonds. The Boston Hunters logo is an osprey, clasping a baseball bat in its talons. With the teams now set and identities established, the league is ready to launch its historic first season in August.