Women's baseball 'legend' Ayami Sato ready to leave a mark in Canadian men's pro league

When Ayami Sato opens a 42-game regular season with the Toronto Maple Leafs on Sunday, the Japanese pitcher will be the first woman to play for a Canadian professional men's baseball team.

She will take the mound shortly after 2 p.m. ET in an expected start against the visiting Kitchener Panthers, throwing a fastball nearly 80 miles per hour and a curveball reportedly with a higher spin rate than most major leaguers — resulting in more swing-and-miss against hitters.

For those doubting Sato's ability to succeed in the nine-team Intercounty Baseball League based in southern Ontario, the Japanese legend is inviting people in and around Toronto to come watch her debut at Dominico Field in Christie Pits.

While the curveball isn't her favourite offering, the foot-five right-hander revealed this week during a visit to CBC Sports headquarters in Toronto, she enjoys watching opposing hitters struggle to make contact.

WATCH | Japanese women's star Sato brings wealth of experience to IBL's Maple Leafs:

"I just kept [throwing] it and got better and better by playing," Sato told Anastasia Bucsis through interpreter Yoko van Veen. "Everybody tells me good things about my curveball."

Sato, 35, said she has been emotional "every day" since her recent arrival in Toronto and is excited to help the eight-time champion Maple Leafs, who were seventh last season with a 17-25 record before being swept in three games by the Barrie Baycats in a best-of-five first-round playoff series.

"Last year I got a [contract] offer and knew I was wanted and needed here," Sato said. "I [want to have] a great season and, most importantly, I will enjoy the games. I want to contribute to the team."

The Maple Leafs made Sato the IBL's first female player last December. Team owner and Toronto resident Keith Stein, a lawyer and entrepreneur, was debating hiring a woman in management or coaching but was swayed to sign a player by Leafs executive Andreas Kloppenborg.

"I'm always trying to figure out ways to create greater fan engagement and interest in our team," Stein told the Toronto Star in February.

WATCH | Maple Leafs 'breaking barriers' and hoping Sato is a star attraction:

Sato, widely considered the best female baseball player in the world, helped Japan to six consecutive Women's Baseball World Cup titles between 2010 and 2024. She was named tournament MVP in 2014, 2016 and 2018.

In her lone World Cup start last August, she didn't allow an earned run and struck out five while limiting the United States to four hits and didn't walk a batter in a 4-3 loss. Sato has only walked seven in 11 World Cup starts covering 70 2/3 innings.

"I'm excited to watch a legend pitch for the Leafs," team manager and former Toronto Blue Jays outfielder Rob Butler told the Star earlier this year. "We are very fortunate to have Sato on our team."