Softball Isn’t Just Growing — It’s Breaking Through
- Abby Alonzo
- Jun 8
- 5 min read
Updated: Jun 10
Why the game is finally getting the spotlight it’s always deserved
For decades, softball has been the heartbeat of countless communities — electric in energy, rich in talent, and deeply loved by those who knew it. But it hasn’t always been seen.
Millions of girls played it growing up — on travel teams that spent weekends chasing competition across state lines with parents scraping together money for hotels and gas just to keep the dream alive. The sport had passion, power, and pride — but for too long, it lacked a pathway.
No major TV deals. No million-dollar contracts. No guarantee that the girls who went all-in would ever have somewhere to go beyond college.
But now, things are changing — fast.
This Isn’t a Moment. It’s a Movement.
College softball viewership is exploding.
The 2025 Women’s College World Series (WCWS) shattered viewership records. Pre-finals games averaged 1.1 million viewers, a 25% increase year-over-year—making it ESPN’s most-watched pre-finals on record. A featured matchup between UCLA and Tennessee peaked at 3.9 million viewers, also setting a record.
The championship series between Texas Tech and Texas drew 2.1 million viewers for Game 1, setting the record for the most-watched WCWS Game 1 ever. Game 2 drew 2.1 million viewers, as well. And Game 3? 2.4 million viewers, making it ESPN’s most-watched softball telecast ever.
And Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) has unlocked real money.
Athletes like NiJaree Canady are making headlines — not just for their performance, but for what they now represent. Canady, the ace of Texas Tech, signed back-to-back NIL deals worth over $1 million to return for another season. Her most recent 2025 deal, another seven-figure agreement, was confirmed by multiple outlets including On3 and ESPN.
Canady finished the 2025 season with a 33–5 record, a 0.90 ERA, and 317 strikeouts. And she's getting flowers from some of the sports greats, including Texas Tech's very own Patrick Mahomes.
Other stars like Jordy Bahl, Bri Ellis, Kinzie Hansen, and Maya Brady are building massive followings, becoming recognizable names not just in softball, but in the broader world of sports marketing.
This generation isn’t just talented. They’re marketable.
A League of Their Own — Literally
The launch of the Athletes Unlimited Softball League (AUSL) in June 2025 is the latest — and loudest — signal that the professional game is ready to rise.
The league features four teams — the Bandits, Blaze, Talons, and Volts —
competing in a 24-game season across 10 U.S. cities, including Rosemont, Wichita, Seattle, and Tuscaloosa.
It’s being broadcast on MLB Network and ESPN, with MLB acquiring over a 20% stake in the league, marking its first-ever financial backing of a women's professional softball league.
The league is led by Kim Ng, former Miami Marlins GM and the first female general manager in MLB history.
This is real investment. From infrastructure to visibility, AUSL isn’t just another short-lived women’s league — it’s a fully backed, long-term bet on the future of the sport.
The Olympians Who Lit the Torch
For a generation of softball players, Jennie Finch was the icon.
A gold medalist. A dominant force in the circle. A trailblazer who brought femininity and firepower to the national stage. Finch helped make softball cool — appearing on TV shows, throwing to MLB stars in All-Star games, and inspiring countless girls to pick up a glove.
But she wasn't alone. The 2004 U.S. Olympic Softball Team, often dubbed "The Real Dream Team," featured a roster of legends:
Lisa Fernandez – Three-time gold medalist, pitcher and third baseman, and a fierce competitor.
Crystl Bustos – Power-hitting third baseman who crushed two home runs in the 2004 gold medal game.
Cat Osterman – Lefty phenom with a legendary career across three Olympics.
Natasha Watley – Speedy shortstop who brought flash and fundamentals.
Jessica Mendoza – Outfield star turned barrier-breaking MLB analyst.
Monica Abbott – One of the sport’s most dominant pitchers, known for her blazing velocity.
These women didn’t just win — they inspired a generation. They made it possible to believe in a future for softball. Their dominance laid the foundation for the players we’re celebrating today.
Although the sport was removed from the Olympics after 2008, it returned in 2021 and will once again appear in the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics — a full-circle moment for the game, and a chance to see the next wave of stars carry the torch they lit.
These Stories Matter
If you need proof that softball isn’t just about stats — it’s about soul — look no further than what happened in Oklahoma City this year.
Coach Gerry Glasco, now leading Texas Tech after an impressive career at Louisiana-Lafayette (ULL), guided the program to its first-ever appearance in the national championship series. But for Glasco, this moment is layered with both triumph and grief.
His daughter, Gerri Ann Glasco, was a former standout player at Oregon and one of the most promising young coaches in the sport. She was set to join her father’s staff at ULL before her life was tragically cut short in a 2019 car accident. She was just 24 years old.
Sam Landry, the ace pitcher for Oklahoma, played for Glasco at Louisiana. Landry got to know Gerri Ann while she was a volunteer coach at Louisiana and is extremely close with Coach Glasco. To honor his late daughter, she wore No. 12. When she transferred to Oklahoma, that number was already taken — so she stitched Gerri Ann’s name into her glove instead. And she carried her memory with every pitch.
When Glasco got the job at Texas Tech, he encouraged Landry to go to Oklahoma. Knowing Canady would be his ace, he wanted Landry to get the spotlight she deserved.
In a full-circle moment, the two embraced after Texas Tech defeated Oklahoma in the WCWS semifinals — a moment steeped in shared history, grief, and mutual respect.
Stories like these don’t just exist in the background. They shape the game. They define its heartbeat. And they remind us that emotion, purpose, and humanity are central to women’s sports.
What This Means for Women in Sports
Softball’s rise isn’t just about sports. It’s about stories.
It’s about girls who grew up believing their ceiling most likely stopped at 22 — and now realizing they were just getting started.
It’s about showing the next generation that you can be the face of a franchise. That your sport matters. That you’re worth the investment.
Softball is fast, strategic, gritty, and emotional. It’s all the things we love about baseball, played by women who’ve had to fight for every inch of attention.
And now, the world is finally catching up.
Why This Hits Home
I played softball until I was 18. It consumed my evenings and weekends. It was my identity. I loved it deeply. And I wasn’t half bad.
But I didn’t pursue it in college — not because I couldn't, but because it didn’t seem like a viable future.
The game felt invisible beyond a certain point. And so, I shifted gears and chased storytelling instead — hoping that one day, I could create space for stories like this one.
Seeing where the sport is now makes me emotional — because I know how many of us walked away from something we loved because we couldn’t see what came next.
Now, girls can.
And I’ll be damned if I don’t help tell that story every step of the way.
Softball is rising.
And the world is watching — eager for a new era.
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