Japanese baseball player Ayami Sato throws out the ceremonial first pitch before a game between the Houston Astros and the San Diego Padres on Sept. 16, 2024, at Petco Park in San Diego. (Denis Poroy, Getty Images/TNS)
(Tribune News Service) — A 34-year-old female pitcher has broken through baseball’s gender barrier by signing with an independent men’s league team, becoming the first woman to play Canadian pro baseball.
“The Toronto Maple Leafs are honoured to announce the signing of Ayami Sato, one of the best pitchers in the world, who will make history as the first woman to play professional baseball in Canada!” the Maple Leafs announced on social media.
Sato will take the mound for Toronto when the new Intercounty Baseball League (IBL) season kicks off in May. The right-hander will try to improve on the 17-25 record the Maple Leafs finished with earlier this year.
Sato previously led Japan to five Women’s Baseball World Cup titles between 2010 and 2018 and is arguably the top female pitcher on the planet. She led Japan’s Women’s Baseball League in strikeouts in three of its last four seasons before operations were suspended in 2021, according to the CBC.
Sato called signing with the Maple Leafs “a dream come true.” She’ll join a roster that includes former professional players from the U.S as well as top-tier athletes from the Dominican Republic and Venezuela.
The terms of Sato’s contract were not reported.
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