What Mo’Ne Davis Means to Girls

Hearing “You throw like a girl” jokes is one of those things nearly all girls put up with at some point. Like mosquitos in the summer, you can pretty much count on them.

That’s why Mo’Ne Davis is such a big deal. If you haven’t heard of her yet, she’s the first girl to ever throw a shutout in the Little League World Series, which is going on right now. Actually she’s thrown back-to-back shutouts if you count the 8-0 win against Delaware that qualified her team, the Taney Dragons out of Philadelphia, to head to the World Series. She’s one of only two girls playing in the tournament right now, and one of 18 girls in the history of the series. She’s 13 years old and throws a 70mph fastball. Also she says that baseball isn’t even her favorite sport—that’s basketball.

If you have a daughter, she’s going to hear that she throws like a girl. Even if she plays on a baseball or softball team, even if she knows exactly how to throw, she’s going to hear it. She’ll know that it’s silly, but it still might rankle. So it’s good that now she has Mo’Ne Davis to reassure her that throwing like a girl can be a great thing.