After years of interviewing for top positions in Major League Baseball, Kim Ng is finally able to step up to the plate.
Ng, the first female general manager and highest-ranking Asian American woman in the MLB, said during a press conference on Monday that she knew she was invited to interview for past League jobs solely because she was a diverse candidate. She stuck it out anyway.
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“Yeah, there were times where I felt like the interview wasn’t maybe on the up-and-up,” said Ng, according to NBC News. “But I will say that just by having my name out there was a source of hope for people. And so you do it because you know that you just have to keep your name out there.”
The 51-year-old said she continued interviewing to hopefully change the game for other qualified candidates who are in similar positions.
“It wasn’t about me, it was about others,” she said. “It was about other owners who might give interviews to minorities and women. It was about the women behind me. Or it was about the women starting out in baseball and across sports, all sports. It was about just letting them know this was going on.”
MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred acknowledged that Ng’s post can empower other young female athletes.
“Kim’s appointment makes history in all of professional sports and sets a significant example for the millions of women and girls who love baseball and softball,” he said in a statement.
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Ng began her career as an intern for the Chicago White Sox, and at 29 became the youngest MLB assistant general manager working for the New York Yankees — the second woman to ever make that position — later serving as vice president and assistant general manager for the Los Angeles Dodgers.
“This challenge is one I don’t take lightly,” Ng said. “When I got into this business, it seemed unlikely a woman would lead a Major League team, but I am dogged in the pursuit of my goals.”