Mo’ne Davis, the former Little League sensation who electrified the sports world at age 13 as the first girl to pitch a victory—and a shutout—in the Little League World Series, is gearing up for her next baseball chapter. The league announced that Davis will be among more than 600 players trying out for the upcoming Women’s Professional Baseball League (WPBL), scheduled to launch in summer 2026.
Davis will showcase her skills at tryouts set for August 22–25 in Washington, D.C., at Nationals Park, home of Major League Baseball’s Washington Nationals. She’ll be joined by other trailblazers such as Kelsie Whitmore, the first woman to sign a professional contract with an MLB-partnered league (the Staten Island Ferryhawks of the Atlantic League).
The WPBL marks a historic milestone: it will be the first U.S. professional women’s baseball league since the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League—immortalized in the film “A League of Their Own”—ceased operations in 1954. Next month’s tryouts will whittle the field to 150 players, who will then enter the league’s inaugural draft in October 2025.
Davis became a national icon in 2014, hurling 70 mph fastballs for Philadelphia’s Taney Youth Baseball Association at the Little League World Series. Her achievements landed her on the cover of Sports Illustrated and earned her awards and recognition far beyond the diamond, including a jersey display in the National Baseball Hall of Fame.
After graduating from Hampton University in 2023 and providing commentary for ESPN’s Little League coverage, Davis is now set to inspire a new generation of female athletes—this time as a pioneer in the professional women’s game.