Marlins hire Kim Ng as first female general manager in MLB history

The Miami Marlins have made history. The Marlins named Kim Ng their new general manager on Friday, the team announced. She is the first female GM in baseball history and is believed to be the first female GM in a North American men’s pro sports league. Ng is also the first Asian-American GM in baseball history.

“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. “Her leadership of our baseball operations team will play a major role on our path toward sustained success. Additionally, her extensive work in expanding youth baseball and softball initiatives will enhance our efforts to grow the game among our local youth as we continue to make a positive impact on the South Florida community.”

Ng, 51, is more than qualified to be a general manager. She started her career as an intern with the White Sox in 1990, then joined the team full-time the next year and was named assistant director of baseball operations in 1995. Ng left Chicago in 1996 and spent 1997 overseeing transactions as the American League’s director of waivers and records.

In 1998, Yankees GM Brian Cashman hired Ng as an assistant general manager, making her the youngest person to hold the position at the time. She won three World Series titles with New York before leaving in 2001, when she joined the Dodgers as an assistant general manager. Ng left Los Angeles in 2011 and became MLB‘s senior vice president of baseball operations in the commissioner’s office.

“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 in a statement. ” 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 added: “This challenge is one I don’t take lightly. 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. My goal is now to bring Championship baseball to Miami. I am both humbled and eager to continue building the winning culture our fans expect and deserve.”

Ng and Jeter go back to their time with the Yankees — Ng also worked with Gary Denbo, Jeter’s righthand man, while with the Yankees — but make no mistake, this is not a token hire. She had previously interviewed for general manager jobs with the Angels, Giants, Mariners, and Padres, and has experience in all front office domains. Scouting, analytics, arbitration, you name it. Few executives are as well-rounded.

The Marlins went 31-29 this past season and qualified for the postseason for the first time since 2003. They have built a strong young talent base in recent years, including righty Sixto Sanchez and shortstop Jazz Chisholm, and are now looking to make the permanent jump from rebuilder to contender.

The Angels named Braves assistant GM Perry Minasian their new general manager earlier this week. The Mets are currently looking to fill their front office after new owner Steve Cohen cleaned house last week. The Phillies have an interim GM at the moment as well.