Alyssa Nakken is a phenomenal athlete. She played multiple sports throughout her youth, including softball, on a competitive level. She was a standout first baseman at Sacramento State, where she was a three-time all-conference selected athlete and the 2012 conference Scholar-Athlete of the year. She has bachelor’s degree in Psychology and a master’s degree in sports management, having worked in the Giants’ health and wellness programs since 2014.

At the end of day, she is more educated, more experienced, and by far, a higher caliber athlete than any of the men so boldly ignorant to make derogatory comments about her presence in baseball. 

Our society puts ridiculous qualifiers on female athletes, and asks the most absurd questions of them.

How can she coach if she’s never played baseball? I don’t know John, maybe because having played a sport professionally doesn’t entitle or automatically mean you can coach successfully. In fact, there three managers in the Baseball Hall of Fame that never played in the major leagues…and I think their record and status speak for itself. Additionally, there are at least two dozen more coaches in the MLB who have never played a day as a major leaguer, and I can’t remember the last time we questioned them about their capabilities.

On the flip side, male coaches in softball are plentiful. I’ve never heard a fan or commentator ask how they will be able to coach a softball team since they’ve never played themselves. I don’t remember people ever questioning women’s gymnastics coaches Bela Karolyi or Leonid Arkayev, whose athletes dominated the sport for close to three decades, yet I can guarantee you that neither of them has thrown an aerial series on beam or attempted a pak salto on the uneven bars.

And who can forget the age-old argument…women just aren’t as fast or strong as men. The absurdity of this statement is almost laughable. We create divisions and levels in almost every sport to ensure people are able to compete equitably. Would we ever say that Floyd Mayweather is less of an athlete because he doesn’t fight against the likes of Mike Tyson or Evander Holyfield? No, they are all champion boxers in their specific weight categories. 

But if we must go down that ridiculous road, the fact remains that women are capable of outperforming men. In 2019, Kendall Coyne-Schofield became the second-fastest hockey player in the world, out skating all but one of her counterparts in the NHL. In September of 2019, Allyson Felix beat Usain Bolt’s record for most gold medals during world championships, 10 months after giving birth. And at the 2016 Olympic Games, Jemima Jelagat Sumgong, Eunice Jepkirui Kirwa, and Mare Dibaba, the gold, silver, and bronze medalists respectively, all finished their marathon faster than half (about 90) of the men who ran. 

I’m tired of the double standard. I’m tired of the recurring message that men belong in sports and women will be tolerated, when in acceptable spheres. I’m tired of being an afterthought. I’m tired of being disrespected and overlooked.

And most of all, I’m tired of my presence or voice in anything related to athletics being referred to as a politically correct liberal showcase.