Pedroza receives Jennie Finch Empowerment Award amid All-Star weekend

DALLAS -- Amid an exciting MLB All-Star weekend, young softball athletes competed in the 2024 Jennie Finch Classic, presented by ARM & HAMMER, at the Texas Rangers Youth Academy in Dallas, Texas.

At the end of the Classic, Compton Youth Academy player Katelen Pedroza received the Jennie Finch Empowerment Award.

The award was presented to Pedroza by Finch, the MLB Youth Softball Ambassador, USA Softball Hall of Famer and two-time U.S. Olympic softball medalist the award is named for. The prize, as always, includes a $10,000 college scholarship check and a trip to the 2024 World Series.

Since 2019, MLB, in partnership with ARM & HAMMER, has presented the Jennie Finch Empowerment Award annually to four young female athletes to recognize their achievements as players on and off the field.

The six guiding principles of the award are leadership, motivation, commitment, dedication, humility and integrity.

Throughout the classic, for award nominators, one guiding principle and award pillar within Pedroza stood out: motivation.

“I love cheering on my teammates; that's my favorite thing to do,” said Pedroza. “I'm always the loudest one on the field cheering them on, and I think that it’s very important to be loud and vocal just to keep everyone's energy up.”

In games as difficult as softball or baseball, those who motivate and uplift others can be more valuable to a team than gold.

“As a coach, you want 100 of her,” said her Compton Youth Academy coach, Missy Poti. “She is one of those players that no matter how she does on the field, she's always going to be positive and encourage everyone around her.”

Pedroza’s parents, her father, Juan Pedroza and her mother, Martha Rivera, traveled from California to be in attendance for this year's Classic and were overjoyed when their daughter was named the award recipient.

“I think that she goes on the field and she plays with her heart,” Rivera said. “She's always cheering her team on and giving confidence to her teammates.”

And Pedroza doesn’t just help her team on the field. When she’s not playing or in class, she’s helping run the team refreshment stand at her high school.

“I love being surrounded by softball even on the weekends, basically to fundraise … It’s for my team, so obviously I'll do everything I can to help and support them in any way,” she said.

Pedroza, a shortstop in the class of 2025, is already thinking of what career fields she may want to pursue in college.

“I do want to study sports business or business. I want to come back as a coach or maybe a PE teacher but [I] definitely want to be around softball,” she said.

A $10,000 scholarship check can go a long way for college planning, and Pedroza understands the privilege and honor it is to receive such an award.

“It means so much to me, being an athlete and working toward trying to get my college paid for, [it’s] the best way I can help my family out,” she said.

Her teammates were just as happy for her to win as she was, a signal of what her attitude brings to those around her.

“She’s always uplifting her teammates and even if she’s having a bad game, she’s cheering you on by your side,” said 2022 JFEA recipient and Pedroza’s Compton Youth Academy teammate Grace Shary.

“Hearing Kat’s name get called just brought back a lot of memories of when I received the award. I was so proud of her,” said Shary. “I know exactly how it feels and I was just so happy for her. She really deserves it.”

The Jennie Finch Empowerment Award is presented at all MLB Develops softball events throughout the year: the Breakthrough Series, Jennie Finch Classic, the Elite Development Invitational and the RBI World Series.

Pedroza now joins a list of past recipients who are recognized as exemplary scholars, humanitarians and athletes, something any parent can be proud of.

“Helping my family is the thing that I want to do at the end of the day and just making them proud.”