Women's baseball 'legend' Ayami Sato ready to leave a mark in Canadian men's pro league
When Ayami Sato opens a 42-game regular season with the Toronto Maple Leafs on Sunday, the Japanese pitcher will be the first woman to play for a Canadian professional men's baseball team.
She will take the mound shortly after 2 p.m. ET in an expected start against the visiting Kitchener Panthers, throwing a fastball nearly 80 miles per hour and a curveball reportedly with a higher spin rate than most major leaguers — resulting in more swing-and-miss against hitters.
For those doubting Sato's ability to succeed in the nine-team Intercounty Baseball League based in southern Ontario, the Japanese legend is inviting people in and around Toronto to come watch her debut at Dominico Field in Christie Pits.
While the curveball isn't her favourite offering, the foot-five right-hander revealed this week during a visit to CBC Sports headquarters in Toronto, she enjoys watching opposing hitters struggle to make contact.
WATCH | Japanese women's star Sato brings wealth of experience to IBL's Maple Leafs:
"I just kept [throwing] it and got better and better by playing," Sato told Anastasia Bucsis through interpreter Yoko van Veen. "Everybody tells me good things about my curveball."
Sato, 35, said she has been emotional "every day" since her recent arrival in Toronto and is excited to help the eight-time champion Maple Leafs, who were seventh last season with a 17-25 record before being swept in three games by the Barrie Baycats in a best-of-five first-round playoff series.
"Last year I got a [contract] offer and knew I was wanted and needed here," Sato said. "I [want to have] a great season and, most importantly, I will enjoy the games. I want to contribute to the team."
The Maple Leafs made Sato the IBL's first female player last December. Team owner and Toronto resident Keith Stein, a lawyer and entrepreneur, was debating hiring a woman in management or coaching but was swayed to sign a player by Leafs executive Andreas Kloppenborg.
"I'm always trying to figure out ways to create greater fan engagement and interest in our team," Stein told the Toronto Star in February.
WATCH | Maple Leafs 'breaking barriers' and hoping Sato is a star attraction:
Sato, widely considered the best female baseball player in the world, helped Japan to six consecutive Women's Baseball World Cup titles between 2010 and 2024. She was named tournament MVP in 2014, 2016 and 2018.
In her lone World Cup start last August, she didn't allow an earned run and struck out five while limiting the United States to four hits and didn't walk a batter in a 4-3 loss. Sato has only walked seven in 11 World Cup starts covering 70 2/3 innings.
"I'm excited to watch a legend pitch for the Leafs," team manager and former Toronto Blue Jays outfielder Rob Butler told the Star earlier this year. "We are very fortunate to have Sato on our team."
The Maple Leafs took an interest in Sato after she was featured last year throughout the Amazon Prime documentary See Her, Be Her that shares the story of Sato and six women fighting for gender equality in sports.
She played basketball during middle school since there were no baseball teams for girls but a passion for the latter remained. Fortunately, the boys' coach allowed her to join his team. Sato played on women's teams through high school and at Shobi University in Kawagoe, Japan, but never imagined it would lead to a chance at the professional level in Canada.
"I don't see myself being a role model," said Sato, who grew up in Anami, Kagoshima, a small island in southern Japan. "I'm just doing what I have to do but I really appreciate this opportunity. I am so happy. I'd like to enjoy this moment, and I have to enjoy this moment."
Sato is a special adviser with the Women's Professional Baseball League, a six-team loop set to launch next year. Stein co-founded the WPBL with Justine Siegal, the first woman to coach for an MLB team with the-then Oakland Athletics in 2015.
"If I have the opportunity to play in the league in the future, I would love to participate," Sato told CBC Sports' Tara De Boer for a story published by Toronto Life last December. "But, for now, I'm focused on doing everything I can to bring home some wins for the Maple Leafs."
In between her pitching appearances, Sato will be focused on exploring restaurants in Toronto and drinking Canadian beer.
"It's my first time living abroad, so everything's new. I'll try to cherish every single moment here in Toronto," she said.
"I think I'll look for a good beer when I'm not on the field."
cbc.ca
