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Justine Siegal, M.A. ’00, started her journey with ������ before she was even enrolled as a student. She had heard about the sports studies program led by Robert Stadulis, Ed.D., and while she knew she would not be accepted on her test scores alone, she felt her lifelong passion for sports would carry some weight. 

“Dr. Stadulis said that he could see the potential in me, he could see the passion, and so he knew I could do the work,” Justine said. 

What really stood out to her from her time at ������ was the mentorship she received from the faculty, and it was at the university that she started her nonprofit organization, Baseball for All. It is the largest girls’ baseball organization in the United States dedicated to empowering the next generation to become leaders in the sport and their communities.

She started playing baseball alongside her brother, and like so many other girls, Justine was eventually told there was no place for girls in baseball. That sparked her determination to create space in the sport not only for herself, but future generations, too. 

“If you really love something, if it lives in your heart, if you just keep going, it's your passion that could drive you, and for me, it was baseball,” Justine said. 

She became the first woman to coach for a professional men’s team with the Brockton Rox, and in 2011, she got her break as the first woman to throw batting practice to a major league team with the Cleveland Guardians. During spring training, she met Billy Beane of the Oakland Athletics, who hired Siegal to coach during the Athletics’ fall instructional leagues in 2015, making her the first female coach in the MLB. Her gear from her time with both the Athletics’ and Guardians can be found at the National Baseball Hall of Fame, the Smithsonian and the Weitzman National Museum of American Jewish History.

Her work with Baseball for All has come full circle as its programming has provided access for more girls to play baseball at the youth level and, soon, professionally. Justine was approached by Keith Stein to co-found the Women’s Professional Baseball League (WPBL), which will be the first professional women’s organization in more than 70 years. The league will include teams in Los Angeles, New York, Boston and San Francisco, with games played at the historic Robin Roberts Stadium in Springfield, Illinois.

“Thirty percent of those who were drafted in the WPBL have participated in Baseball for All. I'm seeing girls that I coached or helped be part of our program, and now they're pro athletes,” she said.

Justine will serve as the league’s first commissioner, managing its baseball operations, overseeing player relations and supporting staff development. She will also lead the WPBL’s strategic direction to develop revenue growth and promote the league internationally as a global ambassador. The WPBL’s inaugural season begins Aug. 1 with regular season games and playoffs through mid-September. 

“I just cannot wait for the fans to come see how good the women are, how passionate they are,” said Justine. “For me, it's an honor to make history, but it's much more important we build a better future. With the WPBL and Baseball for All, I know there's so much more for the next generation.”