Yoshida Returns to AWL

January 21, 2011 - Golden Baseball League (GBL)
Yuma Scorpions News Release


The darling of the 2010 Arizona Winter League is heading back to Yuma for more baseball. Eri Yoshida, the 18-year old "knuckleball princess" from Japan became a late edition to the packed AWL roster today. Yoshida was the fan favourite last February in Yuma. She was drafted by Chico of the Golden Baseball League and won a championship ring with the Outlaws. Eri became the first female to pitch professionally in two countries when she suited up for Chico last May.

She was a major attraction wherever she appeared in the GBL last season. Her home field, Nettleton Stadium, was often a media circus with Japanese reporters and camera crews fighting for space among national TV outlets from the USA for footage of the pint sized knuckleballer. The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum came calling when Yoshida collected a hit and RBI in her first GBL game. Her Outlaws game jersey and the bat from her first appearance in a professional game in the USA are now in Cooperstown.

Fans will get to see her in action on opening weekend. Yoshida will be the starting pitcher for the Yuma Scorpions when they face the Saskatchewan Silver Sox at 5:30 pm on Saturday, February 5th on La Voz Field at Desert Sun Stadium.

Knuckleballer Eri Yoshida pitches for the Chico Outlaws of the Golden Baseball League. (Skip Reager)

Yoshida joins a large contingent of Japanese players who will report to the Ray Kroc Complex in Yuma next weekend for the 5th annual Arizona Winter League.

Over 100 players from the Arizona Winter and Summer Leagues signed pro contracts in independent baseball in 2010 and five were signed by major league organizations.

This year's coaching staff is one of the most impressive ever assembled by the AWL. Former Dodger World Series champs Mike Marshall and Pedro Guerrero will be joined by ex-Padre Gary Templeton, former Cleveland Indian Corey Snyder, former Boston Red Sox slugger Morgan Burkhart, former Blue Jays manager Tim Johnson and Yuma Scorpions field manager Darryl Brinkley. Former Chicago Cubs Les Lancaster and Ced Landrum will be joining by Indy ball coaches Brooks Carey, Eddie Dennis, Shannon Hunt and Bobby Post in rounding out the instructors for the 10 teams that will play five games a day throughout February at Desert Sun Stadium and the Ray Kroc complex.

The $20 AWL Season Pass, popular with winter visitors and baseball fans in Yuma County, is now on sale at the Yuma Scorpions office and the Gonzo Garlic booth at the Yuma Indoor Market Place.



Golden Baseball League Stories from January 21, 2011


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