Jacquelyn Robinson

Scott Hardie | August 23, 2010
Chelsea Baker is a talented young pitcher. If she's throwing this well at 13, imagine how much better she can still get. The news story about her is very positive, up until the final quote at the end: "I want to play baseball for as long as I can. I want to play high school baseball and then I also want to play on the USA girls' travel baseball team." Wow, what a bright future to look forward to! If she were male, she would be the focus of LeBron-level media speculation about whether she might grow up to be one of the greatest pitchers in the sport.

How long will it be until the first female player in the MLB, or another major-league sport? 5 years? 10? 20? As a society, we're clearly ready for it, although of course there would still be controversy. The MLB doesn't have a rule forbidding women from playing; the right woman just hasn't come along yet. What woman will step forward and demand to play in a league deserving of her talent, and fight her way in with lawyers and an army of PR reps if she has to? David Stern says this future is near for the NBA.

Aaron Shurtleff | August 24, 2010
There was a female goalie who made it as far as being in some of the preseason games in the NHL. Unless you don't count hockey as a major sport.

One could argue that women have already gotten into NASCAR, but again, what are you calling a major-league sport?

And..um..see my mind is blank, but women have fought their way into PGA events, too, if I recall correctly. Annika Sorenstam, I think her name was.

I think it's getting to the point where keeping separate leagues for women is crazy in some sports, but is there inherent value in separate leagues??

Steve West | August 24, 2010
I enjoy a lot of women's sports but not all. Women's tennis is superb. Women's rugby is a must-see. Women's basketball - not so much. If there were no separate league for women players then I'd probably never see them play .

Scott Hardie | August 24, 2010
I was thinking MLB, NFL, NBA, NHL. I'm aware of the female goalkeeper in the 90s, but I was discounting it as a brief event in the preseason, not a regular player on the regular team. There was also a female goalkicker in college football.

There is value in creating a level playing field that allows many women to play professionally (and be seen playing professionally) that wouldn't get the chance in a mixed-gender league. But there are also phenoms like Chelsea Baker who deserve to play in the majors, and be respected as a good player instead of a good female player. It's the same trade-off that happens when you create a special category of competition. When AMPAS created the Oscar for Best Animated Feature, it was a nice gesture to honor the fine animated films that get little recognition, but it has made it much more difficult for an animated title to get a nomination outside of that category. Up is the first animated film to be nominated for Best Picture since 1991, unless you count Avatar.

Samir Mehta | August 24, 2010
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Erik Bates | August 24, 2010
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Scott Hardie | November 14, 2010
Chess! Chess should definitely be segregated by gender. When I played in high school, the best player in the area was a girl and pretty intimidating. That she was the daughter of one of the richest families around only enhanced her scary reputation. It just wasn't fair that boys like us had to compete against her.