Finch starred in college at Arizona from 1999-2002 with a national championship in 2001. She was also a star player for the 2004 Gold medal winning United States of America softball team and the Silver medal 2008 team.
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Bluefish General Manager Jamie Toole has shown his thrill on Finch’s presence on Sunday, saying the team is excited for Finch to come and manage the team, and described Finch as “an incredible athlete and a wonderful person”.
Finch did more than take part in a pregame media scrum, fill out the lineup card, and throw the game’s ceremonial first pitch.
But with the Blue Crabs threatening in the top of the eighth inning, Finch, a renowned pitcher herself, trusted reliever Taylor Thompson to pitch out of a jam. With two on and no out, Thompson induced a 5-4-3 double play. She also played five seasons in the National Pro Fastpitch league for the Chicago Bandits in 2005-2007, 2009, and 2010. While she may have to wait a while to pick up her second professional victory, it’s still one heck of an accomplishment. Last year, the NFL announced Sarah Thomas would be the league’s first female referee.
Finch has also expressed her excitement on her twitter account, and said that she is looking forward to seeing all of the fans in Bridgeport.
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The Atlantic League, while not affiliated with major league baseball, does boast a collection of former major leaguers, some of them high profile. Justine Siegal was named the first female coach in Major League Baseball history this past fall. It has never happened in the MLB and is going to happen first on an independent league team.
