Kim Ng on Friday made history after she was appointed the new general manager of the Miami Marlins. She became Major League Baseball’s first female GM. It is believed her record also extends to any of the major North American men’s professional sports.
“On behalf of Principal Owner Bruce Sherman and our entire ownership group, we look forward to Kim bringing a wealth of knowledge and championship-level experience to the Miami Marlins,” Marlins CEO Derek Jeter said in a statement.
He extolled her leadership abilities and her contributions to the baseball and softball game with her various initiatives, which have grown the game among the local youth and made a positive impact on the South Florida community.
Before her appointment, Ng, 51, was the MLB’s senior vice president of baseball operations – a position she held for nine years, making her the highest-ranking Asian American female baseball executive. She was the assistant general manager for the New York Yankees and Los Angeles Dodgers.
Ng’s teams have made it to the playoffs eight times and won three World Series titles. Although she interviewed at least four times for GM openings, starting from 2005, she was unsuccessful at those attempts.
Ng started her career as an intern at the Chicago White Sox front office. With hard work and dedication, she moved up the corporate ladder pretty fast, becoming the highest-ranking woman in baseball operations, ESPN reports.
“I entered Major League Baseball as an intern, and after decades of determination, it is the honor of my career to lead the Miami Marlins as their next General Manager,” Ng said. “We are building for the long term in South Florida, developing a forward-thinking, collaborative, creative baseball operation made up of incredibly talented and dedicated staff who have, over the last few years, laid a great foundation for success.”
Ng is succeeding Michael Hill, who was removed after his contract elapsed. Ng will be unveiled at a Zoom event scheduled for 11 a.m. ET Monday.
At White Sox, where she started her career, Ng rose through the ranks to become assistant director of baseball operations. She joined the Yankees later on, becoming the youngest assistant general manager in MLB at just 29 – only the second woman to do so with a major league club. At Dodger, she was the vice president and assistant general manager.
As the MLB’s senior vice president of baseball operations, Ng was in charge of international baseball operations. She worked with numerous major league clubs and other baseball leagues and associations globally. Her team was responsible for instituting and enforcing international signing rules. She is credited for creating MLB’s first system for registering international players for signing, managing international players’ guidelines, and many more achievements.
Ng’s latest appointment was largely made possible by Derek Jeter, a Hall of Famer and baseball’s first Black CEO. As part-owner of the Marlins, he spearheaded a rebuilding effort that saw the team reach the playoffs for the first time since 2003. He knew Ng from their time in the Bronx.
Ng was born in Indianapolis and grew up in New York. Her parents are Chinese, making her the second person only to Farhan Zaidi to direct on-field operations for an MLB team. Ng is an alumnus of the University of Chicago, where she played softball and graduated with a degree in public policy.
Source: washingtonpost.com
