The Washington PostDemocracy Dies in Darkness

A woman analyzed a baseball game on TV and the world didn’t end

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(AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

Jessica Mendoza became the first woman to provide analysis for a nationally televised Major League Baseball postseason game Tuesday night and delivered an expert performance that showed that a woman can work in the booth and the world won’t end.

(Important note: The world may or may not end sometime Wednesday, but Mendoza would be off the hook for it.)

Her scorecard is on its way to the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum and reviews based on her performance were mostly positive. Those based on her gender were not.

Not everyone was pleased, though, with the performance of Mendoza, a two time Olympic gold medalist in softball who called a game for ESPN in August and was promoted to “Sunday Night Baseball” when Curt Schilling was suspended in September. An Atlanta radio jock did go off on a Twitter tirade for which he eventually apologized, but he wasn’t the only angry man fan.

For others, though, Mendoza’s presence was refreshing and inspiring.

https://twitter.com/SydneyCausey/status/651591936403460096

Judging by her performance, Mendoza isn’t going to disappear from TVs, just as New York Yankees broadcaster Suzyn Waldman didn’t go away after becoming the first woman to work World Series game with WCBS in 2009. Women are getting opportunities everywhere, from Becky Hammon with the San Antonio Spurs to Jen Welter with the Arizona Cardinals. They’re making the most of them, too.