INDEPENDENT TEAM NAMES WOMAN AS PITCHING COACH

When the Brockton Rox of the independent Can-Am League took the field for their season opener against the Sussex Skyhawks last Thursday night, history was made. The Rox pitching coach this season is Justine Siegal, the first woman ever to coach a men’s professional baseball team.


A native of Cleveland, Ohio, Siegal has a varied background in baseball, including a stint coaching with Springfield College’s men’s team in Massachusetts this spring. She is married with an 11-year-old daughter, who will travel with her on road trips this summer.

Siegal was hired by the Rox on May 4. Team owner Van Schley said, “The doctrine of professional baseball is going to undergo an alteration.” Brockton manager Chris Carminucci says “It absolutely does not matter to me that she is a woman. I needed to fill out my coaching staff.”