A Girl At A Dodgers Game: Yes, I Know What’s Going On

At a Dodgers game, no one asks the guy next to me to explain what a double play is. No one quizzes him on batting averages before deciding he’s a “real fan”. His presence at the game is enough. Mine, somehow, is not. There’s this quiet expectation that I have to earn my spot in a space I’ve been part of my entire life. 

I grew up around baseball. My weekends were spent at my brother’s games, sitting on metal bleachers with snacks in my lap, learning the rhythm of the game before I even realized I was learning it. At home, Dodgers games weren’t background noise: they were routine. Being a fan wasn’t something I decided one day; it was something I lived. 

Yet, every time I mention that I love baseball especially to a man at a game, there’s a pause. A look. Sometimes a test question, sometimes a joke, sometimes just an assumption that I’m here for the aesthetic. Like my knowledge couldn’t possibly run deeper than a cute outfit or pretty photo. 

It sends the message that girls in sports spaces are visitors, not regulars. 

However, I’ve truly always been here. I’m not visiting. 

bEING A FAN SHOULDN’T NEED A DISCLAIMER

It’s funny because no one questions how I got here while I’m cheering at the right moment or calling a play before it happens. Yet, the second I say “I love the Dodgers,” it’s like I have to prove it. 

I’m not a fan because I grew up in LA. I’m not a fan because my brothers played. I’m a fan because I paid attention and because I never stopped. 

I’ve sat through extra innings that felt like they would never end. I’ve watched games go downhill in the 9th inning and stayed anyway. I’ve celebrated walk-offs like they were my own victories. I know what it feels like to be fully invested in something that doesn’t always reward you. Despite that, you love it anyway. 

Being a true fan comes with that feeling. 

Baseball isn’t a fast sport, it comes with patience. It comes with paying attention and watching things change even if it’s the smallest change. These changes aren’t obvious; they are subtle but require attention. It’s like a thinking game. So why is it so hard for people to believe that women are capable of understanding it? 

rAISED ON DODGER BLUE

The answer isn’t about baseball, it’s about bias. 

We’ve been taught, directly or indirectly, that sports knowledge naturally belongs to men. So, when a woman shows up not only interested but more informed, it ruins that expectation. Instead of adjusting the assumption, people question the woman. 

Here’s the reality: women have always been part of sports culture. On behalf of women, we are not new to this. We’re just more vocal about claiming our space. 

We shouldn’t have to prove that we belong every single time we speak. 

Loving baseball isn’t a performance for me. It’s not something I turn on when it’s convenient or when it looks good. It’s something that’s been consistent in my life for as long as I can remember. It’s tied to my childhood and my family. 

So when someone assumes I don’t understand the game, it’s not just incorrect, it’s dismissive of all the years that built understanding. 

I DIDN’T BORROW MY LOVE FOR BASEBALL

If someone wants to question whether I know what I’m talking about, that’s fine. It’s because I do. If someone wants to assume I’m just here for the vibe, they’ll figure out pretty quickly that I know exactly what’s going on.

I’m done feeling like I need permission to take up space in something I genuinely love. Being a girl at a Dodgers game shouldn’t come with a disclaimer: 

It should mean I’m a fan, just like everyone else.

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