For many girls who have grown up in sports families, playing baseball and softball is simply in their blood.
"I grew up around [the game]," Sarah Hudek, the daughter of former Major League reliever John Hudek, told MLB.com. Last February, she accepted a baseball scholarship to Bossier Parish (La.) Community College. "Once I got into high school, I was like, 'Wow, I actually have the potential to go to the next level.' And I pushed myself even harder."
Hudek is not alone. National Girls and Women in Sports Day (NGWSD), celebrated on Feb. 3, honors all female athletes for their achievements on the diamond and beyond. The Women's Sports Foundation (WSF), established by tennis legend Billie Jean King, observed the first NGWSD in 1987. In 2008, WSF named 2004 Olympic gold medalist Jessica Mendoza, now an analyst for ESPN's "Sunday Night Baseball," its Sportswoman of the Year for a team sport.
"When I was growing up, if you were a female athlete, you were a tomboy," Mendoza said. "Now, we are consistently seeing successful female athletes from all sports in the limelight. It's really cool to be a female athlete now."
In fact, plenty of Major Leaguers have sisters who are starring on the field. George Springer's younger sister, Lena, is a pitcher at Ohio State. She went 7-5 for the Buckeyes last season and threw a complete game. Buster Posey's sister Samantha previously played for Valdosta State, and back in 2011 displayed the family's trademark slugging prowess when she hit for the home run cycle in a doubleheader. Brandon Crawford has a sister named Amy, a former outfielder at UCLA who met her fiance, Pirates pitcher Gerrit Cole, in college. And Brett Lawrie's sister Danielle owns the record for career strikeouts in the Pac-12.
"Ever since I was 6 years old, my dad would take me to train down at the local track and field facility," said Danielle, the first University of Washington athlete ever to win two National Player of the Year awards. "We'd do that almost every day. But you can also get better by playing other sports. You can't teach a woman at the age of 17 to be competitive, so it has to start early."
Red Sox third baseman Pablo Sandoval has already started his young daughter on that path.
"She's going to understand the game, because she's been around me," Sandoval said. "I want to teach her how hard it is working in baseball."
But Justine Siegal, the founder of Baseball for All -- a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing meaningful instruction and opportunities in baseball, especially for girls -- is opening more doors than ever before. In September, the A's hired Siegal as a coach in their instructional league. And as the first female coach in MLB history, she's hoping that the league eventually sees its first female player.
That player could be Melissa Mayeux, a shortstop on the French U-18 junior national team, who last June was the first known female added to MLB's international registration list. As Mayeux and many other ballplayers can attest, baseball and softball require the same basic skillset.
"I grew up playing baseball with my brothers," said Jennie Finch, one of the biggest stars ever in professional softball. "There are more similarities than differences. Glove and body positioning, throwing mechanics -- the fundamentals are the same."
Baseball or softball, male or female, all that really matters is that you get out there and Play Ball.