And She gets the cover of Sports Illustrated
http://cdn.abclocal.go.com/content/creativeContent/images/cms/Cover.jpg

That's awesome. Since 13 is typically the middle-to-beginning of puberty for girls and, assuming she has control of her 70mph fastball (probably) and can field too, I'd bet she'll be hanging tough with the boys for another three to five years at least. It will be very interesting to see where it takes her.

Kudos to her for enduring the obstacles, putting in the hard work, and most importantly for setting an excellent example for future generations.

I would like to see a shift in the general public's interest towards sports where finesse, coordination, and mental acuity can totally supersede brute strength and speed. Unfortunately, race car driving is the only competitive sport that immediately comes to mind, but surely there are others.

edit: Oh, and I apologize for using this as a soapbox, and I don't mean to detract in any way from her accomplishments or to imply this newscast or SI is evil, but as a counterpoint, I also always feel a little disgusted when the media (with their Nike, Reebok and Gatorade funding) draws a direct analogy to gender equality through athletics. It's a dangerous straw man... but meh, not everything on TV and magazines is responsible for solving serious social problems. It's just entertainment, so I'll shut up about it now.