Former Phillies coach Sarah Edwards becomes first woman to be on-field coach in Asian pro baseball

Sarah Edwards has seen the world: She's played softball for the Italian women's national team and baseball for the USA women's national team. She also was the first female coach in the Phillies system. She's played for club teams in New Zealand, Spain, Holland and Switzerland while helping other ballplayers land jobs around the world in her work for Softball Jobs Overseas.

But when Taiwan's CPBL season opens later this week, she'll be embarking on another first: Named as the CTBC Brothers hitting coach, Edwards will become the first female on-field coach in Asian professional baseball.

The globetrotting star was coaching in the Japanese Winter League this offseason when she first met the Brothers' manager and four-time NPB All-Star Keiichi Hirano. She had been working with some of the Brothers' Minor League players when Hirano traveled to Japan to check on their progress.

"He watched me work and liked what he saw," Edwards said in a phone call with MLB.com. "We had a sit-down meeting and he really wanted to be the manager to bring the first female hitting coach to Asian baseball. That was something he took a lot of pride in."

Hirano noticed how she communicated with the players, breaking down the problems they were having in the box and looking for unique ways to solve the issues.

"I saw that the players liked her and trusted her a lot," Hirano said through Le-Tzu Teng, who translated. "After that, I asked the Japanese players, 'What do you think about Sarah?' The players all gave me a very positive answer: 'She's good. She helps me a lot.'"

Hirano stayed for two weeks, not just following the development of the Brothers' young ballplayers, but studying how Edwards went about her work, how she implemented practices and what she brought to the field every day. When it was time for him to return to the Brothers' home in Taipei City, he knew he had found his next hitting coach.

"For us, for the CTBC Brothers, it's not about the men or women, it's about the ability and the quality," Hirano said. "I think Sarah is a very good coach. She will be very good for us."

Hirano is used to challenging the orthodoxy: Last year, the Brothers had Daniel Catal¨¢n, a former Driveline employee, as the team's hitting coach. Following the team's Taiwan Series-winning season, Catal¨¢n's duties were expanded to encompass the organization's entire system, working with both veterans and helping develop the young Minor Leaguers. Edwards was tasked with filling his old position and replicating that success.

"[Hirano's] reason for [hiring me] was he wanted somebody with game experience," Edwards said. "He really likes my in-game strategizing, the way that I spoke with players and things like that."

While more women have found their way into Major League organizations over the last few years, with the Guardians' Alyssa Nakken, the D-backs' Ronnie Gajownik and the A's Veronica Alvarez and Alex Hugo among the most notable, leagues like Japan's NPB and Korea's KBO are still largely male-dominated.

Though there have been women hired for support staff and in behind-the-scenes roles, few have public-facing positions and none have coached on the field: Korean national soccer team player and FIFA referee Eun-ju Im was president and GM of the Kiwoom Heroes for only 10 days in January 2019 before resigning. In Japan, Tomoko Namba is the owner of the DeNA BayStars, the first woman to hold such a role.

In Taiwan, the region's fans are baseball crazed after Chinese Taipei won the Premier12 in November before hosting the World Baseball Classic Qualifiers in March. Edwards is now getting to experience that herself. The CPBL season has yet to begin and already Edwards has seen the impact she's made.

"In terms of really understanding the scale of what I'm doing and how it's changing the baseball industry, it's really hard to wrap my head around it," Edwards said. "When I go out in public, I get recognized -- it's freaking crazy! I'm literally a celebrity. It's a huge deal."

While Edwards is inspiring young fans along with Chinese Taipei's women's baseball and softball players, she also has to deal with the usual criticism and sexism that women in the industry face on a daily basis. She is tired of having to face the same comments she's seen on every step up the ladder.

Cheerleading is an integral part of baseball in Taiwan, and Edwards has heard backhanded compliments saying she should be on the sidelines as a cheerleader instead. The magazine A Day also published a story on the sexist comments and criticism that Edwards had received.

"It's hard enough for anyone to be a professional hitting coach," Edwards said. "No one should have that extra pressure to have to keep proving yourself time and time again, especially with the resume that I do. It's like, yes, you're a woman, yes, people are going to have preconceived notions of you based on what you look like -- my age is a big thing because they're used to having coaches that are older men -- but they all know my backstory here. At this point in my career, I've done so much in the past that nobody can tell me that I'm not supposed to be here."

Fortunately, those complaints are outweighed by the joy Edwards finds in her work, the support she receives from the team, and the impact she's making out on the field.

"All that gets drowned out by the amount of smiles that I get to have in my face every single day," Edwards said. "Fans recognize me. I go to the field and the players are happy to see me, and people just really understand how much my presence means to them. That's super heartwarming."

The Brothers, who have won three of the last four league titles, will be looking to repeat again this year. A championship is the main goal, and Hirano believes having Edwards on his staff will be a crucial part of that success.

"The most important thing for this team is that we have to be better this year," Hirano said. "I think Sarah is a very necessary part to help us achieve this goal."

Edwards has hopes of one day becoming a manager or director of player development, but for now, she has just one plan:

"My goal is to help this team absolutely dominate this year, and be that one team that's just head and shoulders above the rest," Edwards said. "I feel like just striving for another championship isn't enough at this point for a team that has such a successful past."

More from MLB.com

universo-virtual.com
buytrendz.net
thisforall.net
benchpressgains.com
qthzb.com
mindhunter9.com
dwjqp1.com
secure-signup.net
ahaayy.com
soxtry.com
tressesindia.com
puresybian.com
krpano-chs.com
cre8workshop.com
hdkino.org
peixun021.com
qz786.com
utahperformingartscenter.org
maw-pr.com
zaaksen.com
ypxsptbfd7.com
worldqrmconference.com
shangyuwh.com
eejssdfsdfdfjsd.com
playminecraftfreeonline.com
trekvietnamtour.com
your-business-articles.com
essaywritingservice10.com
hindusamaaj.com
joggingvideo.com
wandercoups.com
onlinenewsofindia.com
worldgraphic-team.com
bnsrz.com
wormblaster.net
tongchengchuyange0004.com
internetknowing.com
breachurch.com
peachesnginburlesque.com
dataarchitectoo.com
clientfunnelformula.com
30pps.com
cherylroll.com
ks2252.com
webmanicura.com
osostore.com
softsmob.com
sofietsshotel.com
facetorch.com
nylawyerreview.com
apapromotions.com
shareparelli.com
goeaglepointe.com
thegreenmanpubphuket.com
karotorossian.com
publicsensor.com
taiwandefence.com
epcsur.com
odskc.com
inzziln.info
leaiiln.info
cq-oa.com
dqtianshun.com
southstills.com
tvtv98.com
thewellington-hotel.com
bccaipiao.com
colectoresindustrialesgs.com
shenanddcg.com
capriartfilmfestival.com
replicabreitlingsale.com
thaiamarinnewtoncorner.com
gkmcww.com
mbnkbj.com
andrewbrennandesign.com
cod54.com
luobinzhang.com
bartoysdirect.com
taquerialoscompadresdc.com
aaoodln.info
amcckln.info
drvrnln.info
dwabmln.info
fcsjoln.info
hlonxln.info
kcmeiln.info
kplrrln.info
fatcatoons.com
91guoys.com
signupforfreehosting.com
faithfirst.net
zjyc28.com
tongchengjinyeyouyue0004.com
nhuan6.com
oldgardensflowers.com
lightupthefloor.com
bahamamamas-stjohns.com
ly2818.com
905onthebay.com
fonemenu.com
notanothermovie.com
ukrainehighclassescort.com
meincmagazine.com
av-5858.com
yallerdawg.com
donkeythemovie.com
corporatehospitalitygroup.com
boboyy88.com
miteinander-lernen.com
dannayconsulting.com
officialtomsshoesoutletstore.com
forsale-amoxil-amoxicillin.net
generictadalafil-canada.net
guitarlessonseastlondon.com
lesliesrestaurants.com
mattyno9.com
nri-homeloans.com
rtgvisas-qatar.com
salbutamolventolinonline.net
sportsinjuries.info
topsedu.xyz
xmxm7.com
x332.xyz
sportstrainingblog.com
autopartspares.com
readguy.net
soniasegreto.com
bobbygdavis.com
wedsna.com
rgkntk.com
bkkmarketplace.com
zxqcwx.com
breakupprogram.com
boxcardc.com
unblockyoutubeindonesia.com
fabulousbookmark.com
beat-the.com
guatemala-sailfishing-vacations-charters.com
magie-marketing.com
kingstonliteracy.com
guitaraffinity.com
eurelookinggoodapparel.com
howtolosecheekfat.net
marioncma.org
oliviadavismusic.com
shantelcampbellrealestate.com
shopleborn13.com
topindiafree.com
v-visitors.net
qazwsxedcokmijn.com
parabis.net
terriesandelin.com
luxuryhomme.com
studyexpanse.com
ronoom.com
djjky.com
053hh.com
originbluei.com
baucishotel.com
33kkn.com
intrinsiqresearch.com
mariaescort-kiev.com
mymaguk.com
sponsored4u.com
crimsonclass.com
bataillenavale.com
searchtile.com
ze-stribrnych-struh.com
zenithalhype.com
modalpkv.com
bouisset-lafforgue.com
useupload.com
37r.net
autoankauf-muenster.com
bantinbongda.net
bilgius.com
brabustermagazine.com
indigrow.org
miicrosofts.net
mysmiletravel.com
selinasims.com
spellcubesapp.com
usa-faction.com
snn01.com
hope-kelley.com
bancodeprofissionais.com
zjccp99.com
liturgycreator.com
weedsmj.com
majorelenco.com
colcollect.com
androidnews-jp.com
hypoallergenicdogsnames.com
dailyupdatez.com
foodphotographyreviews.com
cricutcom-setup.com
chprowebdesign.com
katyrealty-kanepa.com
tasramar.com
bilgipinari.org
four-am.com
indiarepublicday.com
inquick-enbooks.com
iracmpi.com
kakaschoenen.com
lsm99flash.com
nana1255.com
ngen-niagara.com
technwzs.com
virtualonlinecasino1345.com
wallpapertop.net
nova-click.com
abeautifulcrazylife.com
diggmobile.com
denochemexicana.com
eventhalfkg.com
medcon-taiwan.com
life-himawari.com
myriamshomes.com
nightmarevue.com
allstarsru.com
bestofthebuckeyestate.com
bestofthefirststate.com
bestwireless7.com
declarationintermittent.com
findhereall.com
jingyou888.com
lsm99deal.com
lsm99galaxy.com
moozatech.com
nuagh.com
patliyo.com
philomenamagikz.net
rckouba.net
saturnunipessoallda.com
tallahasseefrolics.com
thematurehardcore.net
totalenvironment-inthatquietearth.com
velislavakaymakanova.com
vermontenergetic.com
sizam-design.com
kakakpintar.com
begorgeouslady.com
1800birks4u.com
2wheelstogo.com
6strip4you.com
bigdata-world.net
emailandco.net
gacapal.com
jharpost.com
krishnaastro.com
lsm99credit.com
mascalzonicampani.com
sitemapxml.org
thecityslums.net
topagh.com
flairnetwebdesign.com
bangkaeair.com
beneventocoupon.com
noternet.org
oqtive.com
smilebrightrx.com
decollage-etiquette.com
1millionbestdownloads.com
7658.info
bidbass.com
devlopworldtech.com
digitalmarketingrajkot.com
fluginfo.net
naqlafshk.com
passion-decouverte.com
playsirius.com
spacceleratorintl.com
stikyballs.com
top10way.com
yokidsyogurt.com
zszyhl.com
16firthcrescent.com
abogadolaboralistamd.com
apk2wap.com
aromacremeria.com
banparacard.com
bosmanraws.com
businessproviderblog.com
caltonosa.com
calvaryrevivalchurch.org
chastenedsoulwithabrokenheart.com
cheminotsgardcevennes.com
cooksspot.com
cqxzpt.com
deesywig.com
deltacartoonmaps.com
despixelsetdeshommes.com
duocoracaobrasileiro.com
fareshopbd.com
goodpainspills.com
kobisitecdn.com
makaigoods.com
mgs1454.com
piccadillyresidences.com
radiolaondafresca.com
rubendorf.com
searchengineimprov.com
sellmyhrvahome.com
shugahouseessentials.com
sonihullquad.com
subtractkilos.com
valeriekelmansky.com
vipasdigitalmarketing.com
voolivrerj.com
zeelonggroup.com
1015southrockhill.com
10x10b.com
111-online-casinos.com
191cb.com
3665arpentunitd.com
aitesonics.com
bag-shokunin.com
brightotech.com
communication-digitale-services.com
covoakland.org
dariaprimapack.com
freefortniteaccountss.com
gatebizglobal.com
global1entertainmentnews.com
greatytene.com
hiroshiwakita.com
iktodaypk.com
jahatsakong.com
meadowbrookgolfgroup.com
newsbharati.net
platinumstudiosdesign.com
slotxogamesplay.com
strikestaruk.com
trucosdefortnite.com
ufabetrune.com
weddedtowhitmore.com
12940brycecanyonunitb.com
1311dietrichoaks.com
2monarchtraceunit303.com
601legendhill.com
850elaine.com
adieusolasomade.com
andora-ke.com
bestslotxogames.com
cannagomcallen.com
endlesslyhot.com
iestpjva.com
ouqprint.com
pwmaplefest.com
qtylmr.com
rb88betting.com
buscadogues.com
1007macfm.com
born-wild.com
growthinvests.com
promocode-casino.com
proyectogalgoargentina.com
wbthompson-art.com
whitemountainwheels.com
7thavehvl.com
developmethis.com
funkydogbowties.com
travelodgegrandjunction.com
gao-town.com
globalmarketsuite.com
blogshippo.com
hdbka.com
proboards67.com
outletonline-michaelkors.com
kalkis-research.com
thuthuatit.net
buckcash.com
hollistercanada.com
docterror.com
asadart.com
vmayke.org
erwincomputers.com
dirimart.org
okkii.com
loteriasdecehegin.com
mountanalog.com
healingtaobritain.com
ttxmonitor.com
bamthemes.com
nwordpress.com
11bolabonanza.com
avgo.top