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Kelsie Whitmore is making more history on Sunday.
The Atlantic League announced Whitmore is starting in left field for the Staten Island FerryHawks vs. Gastonia, making her the first woman to start in a game in the league's history.
This is only the latest piece of history Whitmore is achieving by playing baseball. Earlier this year, she reached the highest level of any woman baseball player by signing a contract with the FerryHawks, then became the first woman to appear in an Atlantic League game as a pinch runner.
Up to this point she has also spent time as the team’s first base coach.
Whitmore has been a staple of USA Baseball’s women’s team as a pitcher and outfielder from 2014 to ’19. She also played for the Sonoma Stompers of the Pacific Association of Professional Baseball Clubs from 2016 to ’17.
Whitmore told Howard Megdal how much she enjoys the pressure that comes with playing in the Atlantic League as a woman.
“It feels like pressure, a lot of pressure, but you just change your perspective to embrace that pressure,” Whitmore said. “And then using that to compete.”
“Know that there’s going to be failures that come with it, and understand that's part of it. I’m going to make mistakes; I'm going to fail. And that’s all part of it. And my biggest goal was to come here to develop, and gain knowledge to be the best version of myself.”
Whitmore’s last hit in a professional game happened with Team USA in the 2019 COPABE Women’s Pan-American Championships. She recorded eight hits for a .348 batting average in six games during the tournament.
