LET’S TALK HISTORY: KIM NG HAS BECOME THE 1ST WOMAN TO BE NAMED GENERAL MANAGER IN MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL

Earlier this month, Kim Ng (pronounced Ang), 52, made unprecedented history by being named general manager of the Miami Marlins. Ng is the first woman general manager in the history of Major League Baseball (MLB).

Hearing this news, I was pleased that history was made. I did not know much about Ng, and her 30-year history of working in Major League Baseball (MLB), but I felt all the internal warm and fuzzies that I normally feel when I hear that groundbreaking (and overdue) racial and gender history has been made in 2020.

I recently read the New York Times feature on Ng, and while I found myself becoming enamored with her talents and abilities, I also found myself growing more frustrated reading how this amazing leader was constantly recognized and praised for her groundbreaking management and outstanding accomplishments but was consistently passed over for the job of general manager. Ng was passed over internally, and she interviewed for several general manager jobs that she did not get. The more I read, the more it solidified just how hard it is for the most qualified women and minorities to break certain professional barriers, even in 2020.

Ng, who has worked for the Chicago White Sox, New York Yankees, Los Angeles Dodgers, and MLB headquarters over her 30-year career, will be the most qualified 1st-time general manager in MLB history, and she has been qualified for the job for over 15 years.

So, what did it take for an organization to take a bet on Ng, and break that glass ceiling? You guessed it: relationships, representation, and a unique understanding of the journey. The Miami Marlins are run by none other than Derek Jeter. Jeter, 46, has known Ng his entire Hall of Fame career. They worked together for the Yankees, winning 3 World Series together during Ng’s time in the Big Apple. Jeter also happens to be the only Black chief executive of a team in MLB. He has a rare understanding of what it’s like to work in the front office of an MLB team, and not be a white male. That understand – that representation – matters greatly.

I want to be very clear, Derek Jeter did not hire Ng because she was a woman. The Marlins are coming off their first playoff appearance in 17 years, albeit a bubble playoff, but a playoff appearance nonetheless. Jeter hired Ng because she has proven to be beyond great at her job, and has been so for the last 30 years.

It warms my heart that Ng has received her shot. Outside of my love for the O’s and Nats (and of course, our hometown Flying Squirrels), I will be checking the progress of the Marlins. I will be hoping that Jeter and Ng succeed. I pray that her success cuts the wait time down for the next woman, the next minority, to fill the same role.

Cover photo: Photo by Rob Leiter/MLB Photos via Getty Images

Article photo: Photo courtesy of Bryce Duffy/Getty Images