In the top of the sixth inning of Canada’s third pool play game against Germany in the 2009 Little League Baseball® World Series (LLBWS), Katie Reyes, one of two Girls with Game competing in the event that year, stepped up to the plate with her team down a run and the bases loaded.
Staring down the opposing pitcher, Ms. Reyes swung her bat hard and connected with the ball, sending it to right field to score two runs and give Canada the lead.
“A lot of memories come rushing in when thinking about that moment, but at the time, I think I blacked out. It was a moment you think about and dream about as a kid playing baseball. That big moment where you are down by one in the final inning, bases loaded, and you just need that one thing to piece it all together,” said Ms. Reyes. “The only thing that was going through my head was how I had to hit that ball. I could hear the crowd and everything going on around me, but as soon as I stepped into that box, there was a moment of silence, and it is just you and the pitcher. Once I hit it and got to second base, it was fun to see the guys jumping up and down, my coaches jumping up and down, and the stands kind of just roaring with cheers.”
In the end, Canada beat Germany, 14-13, making Ms. Reyes’ single what is believed to be the first winning hit by a female player in LLBWS history. With her team finishing with a 1-2 record after being unable to make it out of pool play, Ms. Reyes ended the series with strong offensive statistics, going 3-for-6 with three RBIs, but more importantly taking home countless life-long memories.
Ms. Reyes’ time on the baseball field started long before that game-winning hit in 2009. With her younger brother already lacing up his cleats, she first sat in the stands, watching his games with her family. Eventually, her mom looked at her and said it was time to join him. Fast forward one year, and Ms. Reyes was leaving the stands behind and stepping onto her first Little League® field.
Eventually, Ms. Reyes switched from baseball to softball, which she continued to play through high school and at the collegiate level for both Howard College and Oklahoma Baptist University. Though she fell in love with softball, after graduation she had the opportunity to return to the baseball field.
In 2018, Ms. Reyes joined a women’s baseball league in Vancouver, British Columbia through the Baseball Canada organization. She and her teammates practiced and played games against each other or against male leagues. They then would enter nationals, playing against other cities throughout Canada, which then led to the opportunity to play for Team Canada to face off against other countries.
Though the coronavirus pandemic and injuries impacted Ms. Reyes’ time with the league, she was invited to Team Canada development trainings and camps. After four years, Ms. Reyes was released from the league and she now she reflects on what the opportunity to represent her city and country meant to her, which is something she hopes more women in the future will get to do, as well.
“There needs to be more resources, tournaments, and financial aid to help showcase girls in baseball,” said Ms. Reyes. “We’re in a time where Women’s Sport is growing tremendously and by having Baseball Canada support the women’s national team, there will ultimately be a change and growth in the female program.”
While Ms. Reyes’ time playing competiviely on the field came to an end, at the same time, she was finding her way within the industry and received an athletic therapist internship with the Toronto Blue Jays while in her third year at Sheridan College, making her the second female in organization history to do so. Today, Ms. Reyes now works full time as a certified athletic therapist for the Vancouver Canadians, a High-A minor league affiliate with the Toronto Blue Jays organization.
To learn more about her experience as a female athlete and her career as an athletic therapist, Little League sat down for a special Girls with Game 50 (#GWG50) Six-Inning Conversation with Ms. Reyes:
First Inning: What do you remember from your years playing Little League Baseball®?
I enjoyed the sport, playing with my brother, and being around a lot of my friends. Plus, I was quite competitive. I had a growth spurt pretty early in my life, so I was taller and faster than most of the guys, which gave me a little bit of an advantage especially because I was so competitive. Then we ended up moving and I met my best friend who was my first female teammate and it made playing that much more enjoyable and fun.
Second Inning: In 2009,you competed as the 14th female to play in the Little League Baseball World Series in Williamsport, Pennsylvania. What do you remember from this experience?
Since we were at a tournament with all boys other than us, Bryn Stonehouse and I spent a lot of time together, which was a fun change because I normally spent all my time with the guys. I remember the table tennis, the food, and sliding down the hill in the mud with basically any piece of cardboard I could find. I wasn’t a huge fan of interviews, but the boys were, so I told them they could take my interviews and answer questions because I just wanted to play baseball. The whole experience was definitely fun and a memory I will never forget.
- In 2010, Ms. Reyes’ brother, Matthew, competed in the Little League Baseball World Series, representing Little Mountain LL (Vancouver, British Columbia).
Third Inning: If you had the opportunity to speak with a young female athlete who is just starting her athletic career, what advice would you give her?
A lot of this game is failure. If you hit a ball three out of 10 times that day, that could be a good day in baseball. It’s just what the game is. So, as a player the biggest thing is to just work hard. If you are trying your best, that’s all I want. You will have bad days, but for the most part, it is all about trying 110%. Plus, its important to have fun. At the end of the day, you’re playing baseball. Nobody wants to strike out, nobody wants to fail, so just go out there and have fun.
Fourth Inning: You played in an all-women’s baseball league in Vancouver after college. How did playing with female teammates differ from your early years on all-male Little League teams?
It was kind of surreal. A lot of the girls who I played with are still playing baseball in the league or trying to make Team Canada. They are very competitive on the field, practicing and working out 24/7. But, unfortunately with female baseball, it’s not a career, but it is more of a side-gig or hustle. So, you do have a lot of girls who are doing full time jobs like coaching softball or being a chiropractor, and then training as much as they can on the baseball field as the same time… Being able to say I was on a field with them was surreal. I love the sport and I love playing with females whether it is softball or baseball, so it was the best of both worlds.
Fifth Inning: You were the second female to receive the athletic therapist internship in the Toronto Blue Jays organization. What did receiving this internship mean to you as we see more females take their places in the sports industry?
The first female to receive the internship was a year before me and they loved her, which is what we wanted. We wanted her to break that glass ceiling and she did and when I got there, I had big shoes to fill. Then, after me, they hired another female so there were three females in a row, which is great and showed that females work hard. We want to be there and prove that we are hardworking and that we were there for a reason and were worthy of their trust.
Sixth Inning: Doing background research on you, I came across a phrase that you quoted on social media that says, “if you can see her, you can be her.” When you hear that phrase, what comes to mind for you as a former female baseball player and now someone working in the industry?
Growing up, there was never that person where I could ‘see her,’ other than myself and a few friends I was going through it with at the time. We were just trying to break glass ceilings while also going through our everyday lives. Even when I grew up and was taking the jump to fly across the country for school, there was no proof yet that a female could receive the internship with the Blue Jays. So over time, my mindset became ‘hey, I will be the first one’ or ‘I will just do it,’ that way there are younger girls who see me doing it and believe they can, too… If you see someone else doing it, you can start to believe in yourself and then start your journey and take it as far down the road as you can.
NOTE: The Little League Six Innings Features are a piece of the #GWG50 Celebration in 2024, with interviews of Girls with Game who graduated from Little League programs and continued to make an impact on female sports throughout their careers. To learn more about this initiative, visit LittleLeague.org/GWG50. The #GWG50 celebration is proudly supported by DICK’S Sporting Goods, a long-time Little League partner that is committed to creating opportunities for girls and women in sports and will be activating around key events and milestones this year.