The WPBL has its first champion, as No. 3 LA blanked No. 1 San Francisco 2-0 in last night’s championship finale to win the pro baseball league’s inaugural title in record fashion.
Entering with a hefty 6.09 ERA, No. 2 draft pick Ayami Sato came through with the first shutout in league history, tossing a complete game with five hits, no walks, and one strikeout on 76 pitches.
Marking the WPBL’s lowest-scoring clash ever, the Queens managed just two hits, scoring the game’s only runs in a third-inning rally behind a pair of errors, a walk, and a Mo’ne Davis single.
LA broke out into a 2-0 series lead, watched the Firebells storm back with two blowout wins, then leaned on Sato to close out the best-of-five final.
The result capped a successful debut season for the four-team league, reporting more than $1.3 million in ticket sales despite playing all 30 games in Springfield, Illinois.
“I told them before the game, ‘This is a must-win,’” Queens captain Ashton Lansdell said. “We don’t know what next year looks like. We might not be here together, as a unit, again.”
