ORLANDO -- After the awards were presented, the honorees gathered onstage outside at the Signia by Hilton Orlando. A large crowd of supporters gathered around to snap a photograph, but to capture everyone in a single picture, they would have to step back. The sprawling image represented the growing presence of women in baseball.
At the 2025 Winter Meetings, more than 30 women were honored with the Katy Feeney Leadership Award at the Women on Deck Reception. One recipient was selected from each Major League club, along with a recipient from MLB Office of the Commissioner and MLB Network.
The annual awards honor Feeney, a pioneering female baseball executive for four decades, by recognizing female employees for their exceptional contributions and initiatives around baseball.
“The highlight of an event like this is having incredible women who work in all parts of our sport -- in front office, in the club, on the baseball ops side and on the business side -- all together in one event amongst their peers and amongst other leaders in baseball, and to be able to lift them up and recognize them all in the spirit of Katy Feeney, who was the original trailblazer in baseball,” said April Brown, MLB senior vice president, social responsibility.
Kim Ng – commissioner of the AUSL, first female general manager in Major League Baseball and a Katy Feeney Award recipient -- addressed the crowd.
“Katy was, in her own right, an incredible inspiration to a lot of us who were in the workforce in baseball,” Ng said. “Everybody knew who Katy was. Her standards of excellence were always right there. She was such a staunch believer in what she was doing. … It’s been a few years now since Katy’s been with us, but I think her legacy obviously lives on.”
The program was created following Feeney’s passing in 2017. Since then, it has emerged into more than an award -- it has become a quickly expanding community.
“Each year, we lift up female leaders across the sport,” said Brown. “Now we're at a point where we are starting to do alumni mentor and mentee matchups, and there's so much more growth that can come from that. As we grow from year to year, this network and circle just becomes bigger and bigger.”
The recipients of the 2025 Katy Feeney Leadership Award are:
- Arizona Diamondbacks: Summer Comstock, Sr. Director, Legal Affairs/Associate General Counsel
- Atlanta Braves: Danielle Bedasse, Vice President, Community Affairs & Executive Director
- Baltimore Orioles: Eve Rosenbaum, Assistant GM, Ball Park Ops
- Boston Red Sox: Beatriz Lopez, Director, Digital
- Chicago Cubs: Sami Williams, Sr. Software Engineer, Baseball Systems
- Chicago White Sox: Sarah LaPorta, Sr. Director, Community Relations
- Cincinnati Reds: Jan Koshover, Director of Event and Guest Operations,Ballpark Operations
- Cleveland Guardians: Victoria Young, Front End Engineer Baseball, Systems & Technology
- Colorado Rockies: Kari Anderson, Vice President, Marketing
- Detroit Tigers: Kelly Rhoades, Major League Assistant Athletic Trainer, Coaching-Major League
- Houston Astros: Jessi Merlo, Sr. Director, Legal Operations.
- Kansas City Royals: Monica J. Ramirez, M.Ed., Manager, ESL & Cultural Initiatives
- Los Angeles Angels: Shanelle Stephens, Manager, Events and Facility Operations
- Los Angeles Dodgers: Patricia Romero-Gilmore, Director, Family Programs
- Miami Marlins: Samantha MacIntosh, Director, Premium Experience & Special Projects
- Milwaukee Brewers: Leslie Stachowiak, Sr. Director, Strategic Communications
- Minnesota Twins: Kristin Rortvedt, Sr. Director, Community Engagement/Executive Director, Twins Community Fund
- New York Mets: Lauren LoGuidice, Sr. Manager, Financial Planning & Analysis
- New York Yankees: Leslie Hanley, Vice President, Risk Management
- Athletics: Fallan Groth, Coordinator, Baseball Administration
- Philadelphia Phillies: Teresa Harris, Director, Entertainment
- Pittsburgh Pirates: Paige Moshier, Coordinator – Process and Integration – Coaching and Player Development
- San Diego Padres: JL Dominguez, Sr. Manager, Marketing
- San Francisco Giants: Karen Sweeney, Executive Assistant, Baseball Operations & Administration
- Seattle Mariners: Jillian Reidy, Manager, Corporate Partnerships Sales
- St. Louis Cardinals: Megan Eberhart, Director, Promotions & Events
- Tampa Bay Rays: Katherine Lucas, Director, Game Presentation.
- Texas Rangers: Emily Caruso, Human Resources Manager, Baseball Operations
- Toronto Blue Jays: Natalie Agro, Director, Partnership Development.
- Washington Nationals: Ashleigh Hazley, Sr. Director of Youth Programming
- Major League Baseball (BOC): Melanie Lee, Sr. Director, Ball Park Operations
- MLB Network: Stephanie Scarpulla, Vice President, Music & Media Clearance and Global Music Partnerships